Making A Point
by Mirokus Kay
Summary: Viola was never dating Justin, no. He just harasses her. She was really dating someone else, who could very much help with her 'social dilemma' at Illyria. And not by just pretending, either. Viola/Kia. All she wants to do is prove girls can play soccer.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own She's The Man. I do not own Twelfth Night. I do not own anything to do with such entertainment, at all.

:(

I wish I knew how to dance though. XD This is just something that came to mind. I decided to indulge, so I hope you enjoy it.

* * *

"I can't believe they won't even let us try out!" Viola whined, half-heartedly kicking the ball down the street. Her throat burned, like she was going to cry.

"It's totally bogus," Yvonne agreed from her left.

Viola sniffled, soccer just meant so much to her. Seeing the possible danger, Kia, from the other side, draped an arm over her girlfriend's shoulder, pulling the slightly shorter girl closer.

"Oh, baby, it'll be okay," she counseled, rubbing Viola's arm comfortingly.

Viola sighed, leaning into the gesture.

"Hardly," she half-choked out, clearly distressed.

"There has to be some rule against that decision, they can't do that to us!" Yvonne argued, picking up the ball from the ground when she realized Viola wasn't paying attention to it anymore. "We'll find one, I promise."

Viola laughed weakly.

"Thanks, Yvonne. One of your civil rights petitions sounds nice right about now."

The black girl smiled; glad she could even slightly take her friend's mind off the dilemma.

"Oh, I'm totally on it."

The group shared a short laugh, as they came to the corner of Viola's street.

"Want me to come over?" Kia asked. Viola's house was still nearly a mile away, at the opposite end of the road.

Viola shrugged, shaking her head.

"Naw. My mom will be home. You know how she gets about us," she rolled her eyes with a small, regretful smile. She looked like she wanted nothing else but for the taller brunette to come with her.

Kia nodded in understanding though. Whilst they never fought, Ms. Hastings was far too nice for that, it was always just a bit tenser when she was around Viola's mother. She instead simply hugged the smaller girl and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

Viola returned the gesture in kind.

"I'll see you later though, right?" Viola asked, hopefully.

"For sure, babe," Kia agreed, clicking her tongue with a wink. Viola laughed, and she caught her ball from Yvonne before heading off in the opposite direction, calling out good bye. She slipped her brother's stolen hat on, drawing up the hood, and putting in her head phones. She slowly made her way back to her house, listening to Sebastian's recorded music pouring out of her MP3 player.

Turning onto the walkway, she clicked the latch of the gate, tossing her ball up and down with her hands. She was jerked, literally, back into reality by a hand grabbing onto her sweater.

Oh great, she thought, when she was spun around. The she-demon herself.

She faintly listened as her brother's girlfriend rattled out another insult that she was too used to hearing.

She put on a sweet smile, blatantly ignoring the curt words. "Oh hey Monique, nice to see you too."

The blonde hummed. "I'm looking for Sebastian, where is he?"

Not particularly caring to help, Viola shrugged again, shaking her head.

"I don't know."

The conversation lasted all of thirty seconds longer, before Monique strutted away. Viola turned towards the door smirking. It disappeared as soon as she crossed the threshold into her house.

She let her mom drag her to a couch full of dresses before managing to brush her off and make it up the stairs. She wandered into her brother's room first.

"Hey Sebastian, you okay?"

"Yeah," her twin answered, stuffing articles of clothing into an army duffle bag.

"Monique was looking for you," Viola continued.

Sebastian made a noise.

After he had jumped out the window and she was faced with her mom, she grabbed her brothers picture on the edge of the mirror.

_'Besides, if you want to chase your dreams, sometimes you got to break the rules,' her brother said, starting to climb out the window._

Well mom, you're right. I might as well be Sebastian, Viola silently agreed, smirking at the thought.

"If you can't join 'em, beat 'em," she suggested to herself.

Snapping her fingers she rushed out of the room, to shower, change, and call her friends.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

"Let me get this straight. You want me to turn you into your brother?" Paul asked, laughing. He tried to straighten his face, but really. Why must he be friends with crazy high school chicks?

The three girls in front of him nodded with proud smiles on their faces.

Paul tried to dissuade them, but four girls against you is a good argument, so he agreed, willing to do anything for them.

The next day and a half was a crash course in the lifestyle of a man. The second morning, Paul picked Viola up from her house in his green VW, promptly taking her to his apartment. There he met Kia and Yvonne, to add the finishing touches to her disguise.

The uniform and cosmetic supplies were laid out in the living room, and Kia was quick to volunteer to help Viola bind her chest with the ace bandage wrap they had. They retreated to the bathroom.

"You sure you want to do this?"

Viola shrugged.

"Not really, but I want to play. Badly."

Kia nodded.

"I know. You better kick their butts, got it?"

Viola smiled.

"You know it," she said with a final twirl. Kia added a top strip of tape to keep it in place, before spinning the younger twin around, kissing her easily.

She pulled back with a wink.

"For good luck."

Viola grinned, kissing her again.

"Just because," she smiled.

With a laugh, the pair made their way back to the living room. Paul threw his arms out.

"Finally. I won't even ask," he said, in mock impatience.

Kia and Viola shared a grin.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

"Are you sure I can do this?" Viola hissed across the top of the green bug.

"Oh yeah, absolutely," Paul said, sounding like he was trying to convince himself. She definitely had her doubts, but was still left to make her way through the crazy campus and dorm building to her room.

She unlocked and threw the door open as quick as she could, nearly slamming it shut. She leaned against the door, trying to regain her composure.

Her roommate and his friends didn't help much, either.

Well, Viola mulled in her head. Now that they think I'm crazy, I'm all set! No better way to start!

The rest of the day went just as well.

"Hastings, second string," Coach Dinklage said slowly, deliberately handing Viola a yellow penny.

She sighed, defeated.

And that was how she found herself in the headmaster's office.

"I'm done. It's over, they know," she said in dread.

The following meeting was one of the most awkward and unusual things ever. Running into pretty blonde, with the equally cute shoes, however, was a pleasant encounter.

She's no Kia though, Viola thought, debating on whether to call her girlfriend or not. Desire won out, and she flipped open her phone on the way to the cafeteria.

"Vi? What's up?"

"Hey hun. Nothing much, just... calling."

She could hear the smile over the phone.

"You're so sweet."

Viola grinned at the compliment.

"For you? Always," she flirted. She sighed.

"Oh that doesn't sound good. How'd tryouts go?"

Viola hesitated. Lie?

No.

"They... went. Let's just say that I have my work cut out for me if I want to play against Cornwall."

"Oh, baby, don't worry. It'll work out, trust me," her girlfriend promised. Viola used her shoulder to push open the doors.

"You sure?"

"When have I ever lied to you?"

Viola grinned.

"Yeah, you're right. I'll call you later, okay babe?" she asked, passing the table of her roommate and his friends.

"I'll hold you to that. We totally need to have a sleepover soon."

Viola laughed, "Oh, definitely. We can talk about that then, though."

She heard Kia laughing on the other end.

"You just want to talk about it in person, I get it. Persuasion."

"You know me so well. Well, I'm next in line, so I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

"Need you ask?"

Viola could hear the joke in her tone.

"I guess not. Love ya babe."

"Aww, I love you too Vi! Tomorrow!"

Viola hung up with another laugh.

"Oh Kia," she murmured to herself before ordering.

"Have a happy sandwich and apple day!"

Viola forced a smile. The headmaster was certainly a cheery guy. She turned away, hesitating.

Sit with the guys?

Hmmm, I'm not too sure they like me, Viola thought. She shrugged it off after another moment of contemplation.

"Yo, what's up bros?"

Five minutes later they were out the doors. Viola fought back the blush, shrugging and trying to appear nonchalant.

She wasn't sure if it was successful.

She hurriedly ate her sandwich and apple, getting to her feet. She grinned and nodded to Olivia when the shorter girl said 'hi' before throwing out her trash and leaving the lunch room.

She leaned against the wall outside, letting out a long breath of air.

"Day one, check," she said to the empty hall.

* * *

Yeah, well. Sorry it's so short, but be on the lookout for more! I know it's vague, and fast-paced, I just wanted to get the stuff basically the same from the movie out of the way.

;)

Any feedback for me?


	2. Chapter 2

Hey, hey, hey. I like repeating myself ;) Lookie! More story! Rejoice, throw a party. All that fun jazz that I don't do outside of school.

:S

Sad life, I know. Enjoy!

* * *

Dodging everyone she saw, Viola made her way sporadically to the bathroom. She all but sprinted to the showers, looking around the corner with a gasp.

"Empty shower," she breathed. Yes! She quickly worked to unwind the bandage around her chest, feeling the pressure relieved when it was gone.

I can breathe, she joked silently. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the creepy stalker that Duke had pointed out in the lunchroom come around the corner. At his gasp, she spun, easily folding her hands over her chest.

"Malcolm Festes, dorm director. Shower shoes are to be worn in the bathroom at all times, except when you're in the actual shower. Did you not read your dorm life pamphlet?"

Viola let out a breath of relief, giving the boy a queer look. Seriously? She saw a shirtless Duke come around the corner and ignored as Malcolm continued. She bit back a laugh when Duke whipped the towel from around his neck, hitting the blonde in the head.

Malcolm let out a suspiciously feminine scream and doubled over.

"Sup dawg?" Viola nodded, trying to act casual despite the circumstances. Duke gave the smaller teen an odd look at her greeting.

"Yeah, uh, okay homie," he returned awkwardly, as his grin from successfully getting Malcolm to shut up disappeared.

Did the kid know he was white? the soccer captain had to wonder. Maybe he was racially confused.

Viola shifted from foot to foot, glancing at the much bulkier soccer player.

"Later," she said suddenly, grabbing her bag and towel.

She spun around when he replied.

"Hey, you, uh... forgot, er, this, coolio," Duke hesitantly held out the wrap that was left on the counter. Viola doubled back, wrapping the bandage around her hand as she pulled it away. She gave him a once over.

Really, that boy could kill me if he ever knew, she thought dreadfully.

"Word g-money," she thanked, keeping up her boy persona. She turned and hurried out of the room, not hearing Duke chuckle at how weird she was. Supplies in hand Viola all but ran back to her room, throwing her stuff in a pile between her bed and the wall. She fell backwards with a sigh, hearing the springs squeak at her weight.

"Great, I'm filthy, I smell worse than I ever have before, and to top it off... I can't even shower."

She sighed. Maybe her whole idea wasn't a good one. She was getting nowhere so far. She lay on the bed, glaring at the ceiling as she cursed herself out in her head.

Why can't I just think things out? She wondered with a huff. The door clicked open, and she didn't look to know that it was Duke. The smell of soap reached her nose, and she glanced at the boy jealously.

Lucky bastard.

Her gaze returned to the ceiling as she ignored the rustle of her roommate getting changed. When he was finally settled on his bed, Viola chanced a glance his way.

Duke sat casually against the headboard, book in his lap.

Viola rubbed her forehead with the back of her hand.

"So, uh... you don't have a girlfriend? I just mean, well, with lunch and all," she chanced.

Duke gave her an odd look before turning back to his book.

"No."

The pathetic attempt at a conversation was futile, and as soon as Viola realized this, she turned away from the captain, lying on her side as she studied the irritatingly plain forest green wall.

Kia, I will totally take you up on that sleepover, she thought glumly, mulling over the lack of excitement in the dorm room. She hugged one of the pillows to her chest, almost longingly, as she closed her eyes.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

Viola looked up at the dark, stormy sky, uneased, before she turned back to what was possibly the most violent soccer game she'd ever had the chance to witness. She gulped as she saw one boy go down from an elbow to the face, mid-jump.

I'm gonna die, she thought regretfully from the bench.

She gasped when another boy got kicked across the head when he dove for the ball.

"Okay Hastings, you're up," Dinklage shouted, whipping round to point to Viola.

"I'm up?" she whispered dreadfully to herself, looking down the bench for an escape.

Coach jerked off his hat, "Hastings, are you deaf? Come on, let's go!"

Viola struggled to her feet, looking down at the hindrance.

What the- ruffles? She fought down the urge to puke at the bright pink color of the poufy dress.

"Get your butt out there, come on!" Coach threw his hat to the ground as Viola finally snapped into action. "Go, you're useless," he continued when she tripped over the fabric.

She held up the sides of the dress as she ran across the field, kicking the ball as she went. She dodged around a flying body, looking around quickly.

This is barbaric, she thought. A boy from the other team charged her, before he was tripped and knocked aside. Viola let out a scream when the back of her dress tore. She was left to face Justin Drayton, her very own stalker.

"Come on baby, come on," he urged, clapping his hands in a crouched goalie position.

Just wind up and embarrassing him, she thought. She went to kick the ball as hard as she could, but missed completely, flipping around to land hard on her back. Both teams circled her fallen form, pointing and laughing, she realized, rubbing her head dazed.

Is that water? she wondered, before the mass of it hit her.

She jerked awake with a gasping cough.

"Rise and shine," a masked boy said, and Viola, still recovering from the dream, screamed as a handful of guys lifted her out of bed.

"Ahh, let go!" Realizing what she was doing, she cleared her throat. "Ahh, let go!"

They still carried her out of the room, down the hall and into the bathroom.

"Welcome to hell," another masked boy shouted in the small room, as her and the other rookies were put back to back in a circle. The surrounding players shouted, making Viola cringe at the echoes. She shied away from a handful of oatmeal, gagging as some got into her mouth.

Eww, totally disgusting. Who knows where their hands have been? Flashlights roamed around the room, creating a strobe-like effect. After the group was fully doused in oatmeal, the screaming quieted down slightly, as one of the masked boys spoke again.

"Gentlemen! Let me present this year's soccer newbies!" he finished with a shout, pointing to the oatmeal covered boys, and Viola finally understood what they were doing.

First year hazing.

The other masked boy, who she finally recognized as Toby, started again.

"But first, you must remove your clothes!"

The rest of the room echoed his words, and Viola glanced to her fellow victim's noticing that they were obeying the commands. She froze at all the yells before pulling her pajama shirt away from her body.

She officially hated oatmeal.

Oh, no way in hell are these coming off, she thought firmly, dropping to the ground. In the mass of chaos, she went unnoticed as she crawled on the floor, weaving in and out of people's legs. She reached up the wall, hand slipping at the fire alarm.

Come on, she thought, hoisting herself to her feet.

Gritting her teeth, she pulled the red lever, and the sprinkler system activated with a loud ringing that filled the room.

Viola used the distraction to make her escape, running straight back to her room as she entered and slammed the door shut, locking it. She stood there for a moment in shock, dripping water and oatmeal. Her alarm clock flashed red. 3:23.

"I hate this place," she finally declared to the empty room, grabbing a towel and her bag of shower supplies. She stuffed a clean set of clothes into her bag, leaving the room again. She heard the commotion in the bathroom, the only place where the sprinklers were on as she passed by it. In a dead sprint she ran out of the dorm building, across campus and into the gym. Not wanting to chance the guy's locker room, in case the team decided to relocate, she instead entered the girl's room, slipping off the wig.

Faster than she ever had before, she showered, concentrating solely on getting the soggy mess off her body. Clean she ran the wig under the water, using the extra brush Paul had given her to assist in cleaning it off.

"This blows. This royally blows," she fumed, feeling the brush get tangled in all the knots. Several minutes later it was good as new, and she changed into the clean clothes, a pair of baggy jersey shorts and a long sleeved t-shirt. Looking in the mirror, she applied the fake eyebrows and sideburns before setting her wig in place.

Good enough, she thought, as she rolled the dirty clothes into a ball before shoving it in her bag. She escaped the quiet room, meticulously avoiding the group of soccer players. True to her guess, they were moving towards the locker room.

She sighed as she ducked behind a piece of wall, waiting for the sound of stomping feet to end. Finally she heard the click of the door shutting, and she rushed out of the gym, blending into the group of people waiting outside the dorm room for news of the hassle.

"It's just a false alarm, everyone," Principal Gold assured the crowd shortly later. He was standing on the top of the stairs with a megaphone. "Someone decided to pull the fire alarm as a joke, that's all. Though there was a massive amount of oatmeal clogging the drains in the bathroom, everything is otherwise okay. You can return to your rooms now."

As the previous excitement wore off, Viola made her way into the building with the rest of the crowd, going to her room. Changing her soaked sheets, she settled on the bed for two more hours of sleep before she needed to be up for morning practice.

She was out before her head touched the pillow, frowning the whole time.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

Viola yawned, ignoring the glares from her teammates. She blinked tiredly as coach belted out the drill that they were to be running.

Having caught on about the incident the prior night, Dinklage seemed to be taking extra care to run them into the ground this morning. Viola forced herself to keep going, knowing there was only twenty minutes of torture left.

Then again, twenty minutes of suicides usually is very successful at breaking one's spirit. Especially when they're timed.

Viola doubled over, gasping when the whistle blew, not able to keep from glaring at the few boys that didn't make the run in time.

They did it all over again, ignoring the few students that had stopped by to survey their whipping.

Viola's will held up, as she was near the head of the pack in crossing the goal line again. She leaned against the post, gasping for air, forcing herself to ignore the gagging from some of the guys. She coughed when she heard sounds of some of her teammates throwing up, but otherwise kept her composure. She waited for the rest of the team to finish up, knowing they would have to run it again. Instead she used her precious seconds of a break to look at the scatter of people. Her eyes fell on the short blonde from the prior day, and Viola shook her bangs out of her face, nodding weakly to the girl when she gave a small smile of encouragement.

Wiping her forehead with her long sleeve, she reluctantly pulled away from the cool metal; readying herself for the whistle she knew was coming.

"Okay men, you get 45 seconds for this one. If you make it, you'll be done for the day. If not... well, why don't you just finish."

Viola gritted her teeth, urging her fellow players to push through. The whistle blew and she took off, digging as deep as she could find, fighting to beat the clock. One quarter, back. Midfield, back. Three quarters, back. She ignored the burning in her legs as she finally reached the far goal line, leaning down to touch the chalky mark before doubling back. Her effort didn't go unnoticed, and she forced herself to speed up, crossing the starting goal line a handful of strides before anyone else.

Must be that extra sleep I got, she thought tiredly. She crouched low to the ground, using the goal post to steady herself again as she fought to breathe.

Thankfully the last man crossed just as Dinklage blew the whistle.

"Okay men, you're free. But don't be too satisfied, for most of you that was the worst display of athleticism that I've seen in a while."

Viola closed her eyes, moving to sit with her back against the post. She leaned her head backwards, so her face was tilted up towards the sky.

I really hate this place, she thought darkly. Too tired to move, she sat in that position for a solid twenty minutes, knowing that classes wouldn't even start up for another hour.

She heard the grass crunch beside her, and she struggled to open her eyes, gazing tiredly at the newcomer.

Duke's solemn face made her think twice before saying anything.

"That was a smooth move this morning, pulling that fire alarm. Thanks for making coach run us," he informed the sitting player sarcastically. Viola let out a breath, turning away.

She had bailed out, and she was thankful for it.

Duke, apparently done, walked off, and Viola finally got the energy to pull herself up, making her way slowly off the field and to the dorm rooms. Her legs were weak, and shaky, but she continued anyway. She paused at the stairs, groaning again before dragging herself up one by one. Back at her dorm she washed her face and toweled herself dry, applying heavy amounts of deodorant before she changed into her school uniform, frustrated that she couldn't at least rinse the disgusting aftermath of practice off her.

Unfortunately, at this time in the morning the showers were like Grand Central Station during a rush. Viola packed her bag with the books she needed before leaving the dorm, grabbing an apple from the cafe as it was all her stomach could handle at the moment. Tossing the finished apple into a nearby trash bin, she made her way down the academic hall, ignoring the wide berth she was getting from people.

"Eww, take a shower," one girl ordered, looking disgusted.

Viola turned as she walked by.

"I wish I could-"

She was cut off when Toby hit her shoulder as he walked by.

"Man, nice job pulling the fire alarm, moron."

"Yeah, way to be a man," Andrew added as he passed her on the other side. Duke brushed passed after Toby, silently.

He had said all he needed to earlier.

Viola watched them walk away, just shy of pouting. Two girls accosted her, spraying little handheld perfumes into her face. Viola squeezed her eyes shut, stumbling away.

"Ow," she gritted her teeth, using the wall for support as she made her way away from the traffic. She turned down the first available spot, a hallway which lead to the girl's bathroom. Not thinking, she shoved through the door, jumping when the red head that was in there screamed, pushing past her. Viola hurriedly followed her out of the door, apologizing repeatedly.

"My bad!" She called after the girl, still blinking rapidly to get the sting from her eyes. She jogged down the end of the hallway, about to continue in her original direction before Principal Gold stopped her. In his customary suit, he looked almost normal, if not for the paint bucket and brush in his hands.

"Sebastian!" Viola turned slowly, resigned to her fate. She looked down at her feet, ready for a lecture. "Did you just come out of the girl's room?" the bald man continued, pointing down the hall. Viola's mouth fell into a straight line, and she glanced at the indicated room.

"Mmm-hmm," she hummed in conformance.

"What..." the headmaster trailed off, sighing before he looked back to the brunette. "Look, son," he said, offering a small smile in hopes of making her feel more comfortable.

She shifted awkwardly.

"When I was a young man, I too had a fascination with the female form," he admitted. "And would occasionally sneak a peak, if a peak presented itself to be sneaked."

Viola rolled her eyes, not in the mood for his cheery disposition at the moment.

"So that's not a problem," the man continued, not noticing her inattention. "Unless you have something troubling you beyond the usual youthful male exuberance?"

Viola closed her eyes, embarrassed at the situation. People were giving the pair odd looks as they passed by, though in retrospect, she had been getting odd looks all morning.

"No, I just," she waved down the hall. "Went into the wrong room."

Principal Gold looked down the hallway before turning back to the soccer player.

"Are you sure son, because I'm here for you. Okay? If there's anything bugging you, anything at all compelling you to go to the ladies room... well, I mean, you know, go inside the ladies room, I just want to know what it is."

Viola shrugged, shaking her head.

"Nope, just an honest mistake."

The headmaster was contemplative for a moment before laughing.

"I believe you, you know why?" he asked getting serious. "Because a good relationship is built upon trust. And guess what? You got mine."

Viola smiled at the man, relieved once again. There are too many close calls for my liking, she thought wearily. The headmaster looked forward, his face wrinkling up in concentration.

"What is that smell."

Viola suddenly felt ready to cry, but instead she shifted, clearing her throat.

"I'm afraid it's me sir."

"Okay, look, son, what is on your mind? What the hell is happening-"

"Nothing," Viola assured him. "I'm fine," she said snappishly, spinning as she started back down the hall finally.

"Okay, okay I'm convinced," the headmaster said apologetically, causing her to stop in mid-stride. "Alright, I... look, at seventeen I didn't open up easily either, Sebastian."

Viola nodded, bidding her time before she could leave. Please, let it go.

"All in due time, eh?"

Viola opened her mouth to respond before she closed it again. "Yay," she finally decided on, giving up.

"Okay." Once again, Viola started off, only to be stopped by the headmaster continuing. "Whatever your secrets may be... I know that someday soon, you'll share them with me.

I doubt that highly, Viola disagreed silently.

"Okay, you'll be a happier man for it, right?"

Viola didn't turn around to respond.

"Right, yeah, uh. I'm sure you're right there sir."

"Sebastian."

Viola froze again.

"Yes sir?"

She didn't see the headmaster's smile.

"Have a great day."

She nodded.

"You too sir," she said in farewell before finally being allowed to continue to class.

The rest of the day went just as well, as she suffered silently through Trigonometry, English, Health, and Music. By the time the last bell rang, Viola was ready to crawl under a rock and never come out again.

Or in the very least, she amended. Become a hermit and take up residence in Kia's room. She found the second one much more appealing, as she flipped open her cell phone, hitting speed dial.

"Hello, my life sucks," Paul said his customary greeting.

"I'm done," Viola informed him, talking quietly into the phone as she walked through the double doors out to the front patio. "Everyone thinks I'm a huge geek/loser/deviant, I'll never even see the field against Cornwall, and," she grimaced, pulling at the collar of her shirt. "I smell so bad, I'm convulsing people. Pick me up, take me home, and make sure I never do anything like this ever again," she ordered finally, ending her rant.

"Look Vi," Paul said at the other end. "I don't know what to tell you about the whole soccer team." Viola pouted, waiting for him to continue. "But as for the social stuff, I got an idea."

Viola's face adopted a look of confusion. She reached up, scratching her scalp under the wig.

"You do?" she asked.

"Yeah... we're going to show everybody the man you really are."

Viola was even more confused than ever. "How are we gonna do that?"

She pulled away from the short wall, not even bothering to fix the messed up wig. She started back to the dorm rooms.

"I only had one afternoon appointment, but she cancelled. I'll be there in ten minutes, meet me out front. Bring a change of clothes."

Viola nodded, not realizing that her friend couldn't see.

"I'll be there."

She hung up, and hurried to do as he asked. She passed Duke, Toby and Andrew on the way out, brushing past as she grabbed her gym bag.

Jeans, white shirt, blue shirt, belt, shoes, check. She turned around and left just as soon as she had appeared, taking short cuts to the front of the school. She saw Paul leaning against his green bug, and she grinned.

"You are a life saver."

Paul shrugged easily. "I know, get in."

Viola hesitated; making sure the window was rolled down before she took a seat. Paul wrinkled his nose.

"Okay, you were right. You need some serious shower action," he informed her as he pulled away from the curb. Viola leaned her head on her hand, propping her elbow against the door.

"I know, but it's impossible. There's always guys coming and going whenever I get to the bathroom."

"Try early morning, when no one else is awake. Four thirty maybe."

Viola nodded.

"I think I will. It was pointless this morning, because we had morning practice. Thank god it's our only one."

Paul agreed.

"That's good."

"So, what's the plan?"

The boy shot her a grin, holding her in suspense for a moment.

"You can probably guess. What's one things that makes guy popular?"

Viola looked out the window before turning back.

"Good looks?"

Paul sighed.

"No. Well, yes, that too, but... I mean, think like a guy."

"Uh, scoring chicks?" Viola tried again. Paul snapped his fingers.

"Exactly. Now we have something on our side that we can use to our advantage."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. First off, all the girls from the Cornwall team are behind you 100 percent. Secondly, they're all very attractive girls."

Viola paused, before nodding. That was true.

"Lastly, you have Kia. Now, I called up the girls, and they're all going to meet at my place, probably just after you get in the shower."

Viola grinned at the news, visibly brightening.

"Shower? Why didn't you say so?"

"Because I wasn't planning on it until I met up with you," he replied, pulling into the parking lot near his apartment. "But that's all for now. You're getting in there, and taking that shower, or so help me, I'm hosing you off outside with dish soap."

Viola shook her head.

"No, you already promised a shower. I'm all over it," she argued. Her friend grinned.

"Okay. When you're done, they should be here, so just come out. I'll fix the wig up so that it's... well, reasonable. We'll set the plans then."

They climbed out of his car and entered his apartment, Viola making a beeline straight for the bathroom, shutting the door and turning on the water. She hurriedly stripped out of the stuffy uniform, discarding the clothes easily as she stepped under the warm spray.

She relished the feeling of hot water for a solid ten minute before she started cleaning, using Paul's salon products eagerly.

Half an hour later, she stood in front of the mirror, drying off. She slipped into her underclothes and jeans, sliding a tank top on instead of her shirts. She held off on the binding until she absolutely needed to, gathering the rest of her stuff in a pile. Done, she wrapped the towel around her hair, stringing it dry as she wandered down the hall, into the semi-crowded room.

She grinned at the greeting she received, settling down on the arm of the couch right next to Kia, who slipped an arm around her waist, leaning against Viola's side. Viola ducked down, kissing the other girl before grinned brightly at her, basking in the comfort Kia so willingly offered. Viola felt much more at ease, in a welcoming environment with people that she knew liked her.

Which was completely different from the last day and a half.

She turned address the hairdresser.

"So Paul... what's the deal?"

* * *

Woo. Done! Whatcha think? I know it's still pretty much the same compared to the movie (including the deleted scene!), but don't worry. It changes next chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

And now... I'm just writing. Lots and lots. Good for you, a bit obsessive for me.

;)

Enjoy.

* * *

"Go Viola," she heard Paul cue her through the ear piece. Casually, but confidently, she pushed open the door of Cesario's. Two little kids ran by as she held out her hands.

They ignored her and kept going.

Well it was worth the try, she thought, but continued on unfazed. Across the room she noticed Duke, Toby, and Andrew, who spread out along the benches when they noticed her entrance.

And that's why I'm doing this, she mused. The pizza parlor was mainly an Illyrian hang out, since it was only a few short minutes from the school. Those not in high competition from Cornwall occasionally found themselves enjoying the food and social of the restaurant, but it wasn't all that usual.

Viola winked at a waitress that passed her.

"Hey pretty lady," she flirted easily, smirking with the girl blushed and smiled shyly. Oh yeah, I'm good, she complimented herself.

"Dudes, sup?" she greeted her roommate and his friends. She almost grimaced when they responded, clearly trying to act as though they had no association with her.

"Oh my gosh, there he is!" she heard from behind her.

"Sebastian!"

Viola turned from her teammates, to where she knew the girls would be. She took a moment to study their provocatively dressed forms before continuing.

"Ladies! How are you this fine," she stressed the next part in a slow, drawn out manner. "Oh, so fine day?"

She grinned when they didn't even bat an eyelash at the front she put up.

Damn, they're good, she silently commended the girls.

Trisha, the former keeper of the Cornwall girls team answered.

"Well," the blonde purred in a seductive manner. With baby blue eyes and a tall, slim figure, the girl was a high class beauty. "We're all much better since you got here. Aren't we ladies?"

"Yeah, come join us!"

"Please Sebastian? It's been so long since any of us have... had you with us."

Viola choked when Yvonne said that, and the black girl quickly hid her own mouth so no one could see her sheepish grin.

"Anything for you lovelies. _Anything,_" Viola replied smoothly. She was pulled, almost violently, into the bench, where she was immediately surrounded by the girls.

Oh, this is real nice, she thought. She shot a glance at her teammates, noticing the three Illyrian soccer players staring at her in shock. She smirked, quirking an eyebrow and nodding subtly to the group of girls, playing her part up. She held back a grin when her teammates jaws dropped, as they stared in a mixture of shock and awe.

"You've all missed me right?" she asked smoothly, staying in character.

"Oh, of course. It's just not the same seeing your sexy face every day."

"Or night."

"Late... at night."

Viola grinned, amazed at how committed the girls were to their roles.

"It's nice to know you think of me so... fondly," her green eyes sparkled at the inside joke.

"How could we _not_?"

"If you weren't already taken, I'd be all over you. _Again._"

"After me, you mean."

"No, me first."

Viola snorted, as the girls took a minute to bicker with each other. She looked across the empty table next to them and right at her new teammates. Their heads were together as they whispered, shooting her frequent glances.

"Ladies, ladies, no need to fear if it came to that, there's enough of me to go around. Please, please... make love not war," she intervened, getting looks from the corny line she had used. She just grinned, shrugging innocently, as she continued smoothly, "Jess, if I remember correctly, you have that huge bed, right?"

Jess was a fullback, tan skin, black hair and dark, attractive eyes, due to her family's Indian descendant. She smiled coyly.

"You remember? We were pretty... busy... that night. You should know I don't like to share though." The question and answer weren't entirely a front, as Viola faintly remembered the exotic girl's room from when she had hosted a sleep over a year prior. Jess did, indeed, have a big bed, and they had, indeed, been very busy with team bonding activities, and other general sleep over stuff. The only time spent in the room was sleeping.

None-the-less, Viola waved it off.

"Don't be like that. We could have some one on one time."

Viola heard a clicking she easily identified as a set of heels.

"No one better be having one on one time with _my_ boyfriend, but me," Kia's voice broke through the chatter of the table. Viola's eyes widened and her breath was taken away when she saw her girlfriend. She did, however, successfully managed to keep her jaw from dropping, thankfully.

"Kia, baby. How are you?" she said, as the girls let her get to her feet. She heard them whining quietly, and she didn't have to turn around to know they would all be pouting.

I wish someone was getting this on camera, she thought.

Kia's beyond tight top, covering from her shoulders to the bottom of her rib-cage only, was pink and white. Her skirt was short, too short to be proper, and a light blue denim. Two wide belts, one blue, one green, and black strapped heels completed the look.

"How am I? With all your moving in and your new school, I've not gotten you to myself for even a minute. I'm absolutely depraved, how else do you think I am?"

Out of the corner of her eyes, Viola noticed the boys giving Kia appreciative glances, looking between both brunettes in fascination. Viola narrowed her eyes at them, managing to not grit her teeth.

They better not get any ideas, she thought possessively, easily stepping closer to her girlfriend, arms falling to rest comfortably on either side of her waist.

Viola bit the side of her lip, taking a second to think before she got an idea.

"Why don't we go fix that problem?" she suggested with a wolfish grin. She heard the girls, only mostly successful, at fighting down their laughter.

Kia shot a quick look at the small group of Illyrian boys, before turning back to Viola, giving a grin of her own.

"That sounds perfect. My parents are gone until tomorrow afternoon," she responded in the same manner, quiet but clear for anyone paying attention to hear. She had leaned forward, letting her mouth fall right next to Viola's ear. The twin looked down for a moment, grinning widely. She saw the concealed kissing faces the girls were making at her before rolling her eyes at them, turning back to Kia who had pulled away slightly.

"Well, then, let's start making up for lost time," Viola finally agreed, letting the younger girl grab her hand and pull her away. She turned to make a face at Yvonne and the rest of the girls before turning to Toby, Duke, and Andrew.

They were looking at her as if she was some sort of all-powerful being. She raised an eyebrow, pointing discretely at Kia's back as the other girl lead her away. With a grin she nodded to the group, before she caught Paul's eyes, smiling a thanks.

The blue eyed boy grinned back, looking at the side door that would take them to the back entrance of the parlor.

All-in-all, Viola felt it was a success. Especial once they were outside, and Kia easily trapped Viola against the wall as they fell around the corner into the shade of the two buildings.

"Oh my gosh, that was totally priceless," Kia laughed finally, throwing away the act. Viola laughed too, easily seeing the humor.

"I can't believe _Paul _came up with an idea like that. Only him," Viola added, finally able to relax now that they were alone.

Kia smirked, "So, you taking me up on that offer? My parent's really are gone until tomorrow night."

Viola laughed again.

"Hell yes. Duke is the worst conversationalist I've ever met."

Kia pouted, playing the sympathetic card.

"Who knows, maybe he'll be better now. I thought they were going to put you on a pedestal and start worshipping you on the spot."

Viola shivered.

"That would have been awkward."

"Because nothing else today was."

There was a pause of silence.

"Good point." Viola stopped for a moment, to give her another once over. "I totally love this look on you, by the way," she commented. Kia smirked.

"Really? Because I totally hate that one on you," she returned. Viola wrinkled her nose.

"Ouch, low blow. But I see your point, so..." she trailed off, finally giving in and kissing her girlfriend. It was long and slow, and Viola relished in the taste of Kia's cherry lip gloss. Breaking off, Kia was the one to continue their conversation.

"So, my place? Yes?"

"Yes," Viola readily agreed. She paused. "You know, it's a real good thing Sebastian dealt with Monique before he left... I totally don't want to know how today would have gone if he hadn't and she had showed up."

Kia winced.

"Yeah, that could have been messy."

"Just a bit."

"Who knows, maybe we just missed her and she's inside looking for you to get back together with your brother."

Viola shivered.

"Don't even joke about that," she ordered, kissing her girlfriend again, before they finally made their way to Kia's car, driving off back towards Cornwall territory.

If only they knew…

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

"What are you hitting on me? Girl's with asses like mine do not talk to boys with faces like yours," Monique looked at the brunette in ill-concealed disgust. "I'm looking for my boyfriend, Sebastian Hastings."

Duke looked at her as if she was crazy.

"Wha- another one of you?"

Toby cut him off, shrugging. "He's gone. And when you say girlfriend do you-"

Yvonne recognized the threat and moved in before either party could continue.

"I believe you mean _ex-_girlfriend," she corrected the blonde in a defensive manner. "Besides, you're too little, too late hun."

Monique shot the shorter girl an annoyed look.

"No relationship is over until I say it is over, you got that?"

Yvonne snorted.

"Oh, I think Sebastian was pretty clear on the matter. Face it, you're psychotic and he's finally realized that. Now why don't you take your pretty little self home and make yourself useful or something? If that's possible."

Monique stared in shock at the girl, and Yvonne got a final verbal blow in before she could recover.

"Face it hun, you two are over."

Yvonne heard the girls whispering behind her, and the faint sound that could have been high-fives. Very rarely was the black girl so aggressive, and it was usually something worth seeing each time it happened.

Monique stepped up, in a near menacing manner.

"Do you really want to go there?"

"Been there done that," Yvonne replied sassily, holding Monique's gaze evenly. Finally the blonde gave up with a strangled scream.

"You know what? You losers can just stick together, okay? I am totally through with you," she said smartly before turning on her heals and striding out quickly. Yvonne grinned, blowing her a kiss as she left.

"Call me, we should totally do this again," she said loud enough for the girl to hear as she left. With a satisfied smile, she brushed off her shoulders before grinning at Viola's new teammates.

"Sorry for the delay. Do enjoy your meal," she waved them on, returning to her own table with the girls.

"I love you," Stassi, one of the forward strikers with shockingly red hair and warm brown eyes, confessed when Yvonne sat back down. The black girl grinned before laughing with the rest of the group.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

"Wakey, wakey, sleepy head," Viola felt herself being shook as she slowly woke up. She blinked tiredly at Kia before snuggling closer, wrapping her arms around the other girl.

"What time is it?"

Kia hugged her back.

"Don't worry, it's only just past 7:30, so you still have an hour and a half. I figured you could shower here and change, then we could grab some food before I send you back to your doom."

Viola yawned, nodding.

"Okay. Paul washed my uniform from yesterday when I was showering and when we were getting ready. I don't have to wear it all horrible like it was," she said tiredly, still refusing to budge from her position. The girls lay like that on Kia's bed for another fifteen minutes before Viola finally mustered up the will power to pull back.

"Can't I just take a sick day?" Viola whined, gaining a grin from her girlfriend.

"Isn't that part of how you got yourself into this mess in the first place? If your brother didn't skip enough, he wouldn't have had to go to Illyria."

Viola pondered on the statement for a moment, before nodding.

"Okay, good point," she appeased with a sigh. "I refuse to like it, however."

"Good. That means there's hope for you yet," Kia said with a grin, sitting up. "Hungry?"

Viola grinned.

"What do you have in mind?"

"How about you take a shower and let me worry about that?"

Viola pouted. Kia raised an eyebrow.

"What? After being tortured for a day straight, I figured you might need a little spoiling."

"And last night was?"

Kia grinned.

"Hey, if I do recall it was pretty two sided."

Viola blushed.

"...Okay."

"There, was that so hard?"

The Hastings' twin shrugged. Slowly the pair got up and went their separate ways, and Viola once again relished in being able to shower.

Okay, you know it's getting bad when a simple shower merits this reaction, she thought to herself, as she climbed out. She dried off and put on the shorts and t-shirt that were waiting for her. Pausing, she took a deep breath, grinning.

Cherry.

Wandering down the hallway she sat at one of the counter stools, watching her girlfriend wander about the kitchen in, surprisingly, confident movement. Viola was one of the few people who knew how much Kia enjoyed cooking. With a spin her girlfriend winked at her, dishing out fried eggs on two plates. Toast followed moments later, as did orange juice and Kia slid one plate across the counter.

"Two eggs, fried over easy, just how you love them. I know, it's simple, but-" the other girl said, taking the chair next to her. Viola cut her off.

"It's perfect. As always," she said with a smile, cutting off a piece of egg.

Kia grinned back, happy at Viola's response. The pair ate in moderate silence before Kia dragged Viola off to force her into the school uniform.

Finished with the disguise, Kia gave her a look over.

"Okay, I seriously cannot wait until you're done this. It's totally awkward, actually having a _boyfriend_."

Viola laughed.

"That makes two of us, trust me. And you think that's awkward? Imagine actually having to _be _the boyfriend!"

Kia smiled slyly.

"That is true. Don't worry, if I were straight I'd totally go out with you."

"But you aren't. So... you're still going out with me?"

"I... don't know. Something like that," she responded, just as confused.

Viola grinned ruefully.

"Do you think school could have been cancelled?"

Kia shot her a slightly irritated look.

"Are we on that again?"

Viola shrugged.

"It's possible."

"It didn't happen."

Viola pouted, visibly slumping.

"I know, but I'll keep hoping. More time with you."

"Oh, you get bonus points for that. But, you know I'll keep you in line. Remember, its torture now, but you're doing this for a reason! Oh, and, the girls and I have started trying to recruit at the school. Yvonne did some research and, since our season still doesn't technically start for a few more weeks, if we can get enough people to join, we can petition to get the team sanctioned again. Since the only reason they cut it was because we didn't have enough girls, they'll have to take us back, you know?"

Viola brightened.

"And with the publicity if I make first string by the game against Cornwall then-"

"Then a lot of girls will be willing to sign up. Yeah."

Both girls grinned, and Viola gave a small cheer.

"I have to work so much harder. Oh my gosh, we have to go. I need to get to school so I can get stuff done! And you! You need to make sure everyone's practicing and stuff!"

Kia nodded, twirling her previously unnoticed car keys around a finger.

"Well then, let's go babe."

Grabbing her bag she followed Kia out of the house and into her car, and the two talked eagerly the whole way to Illyria. Pulling up, however, Viola fell silent, staring reproachfully at the building. There was only a slight scatter of people when they pulled up, and Viola looked on doubtfully.

"You think it worked?" she asked the other girl. Kia shrugged.

"You'll only know if you finally get out there," she said gently. Viola gave a small grin as she kissed the younger girl.

"I'll talk to you later, let you know how it goes," she said when she had pulled away. Kia raised an eyebrow.

"You better! Go on, you still have to grab books from your room, right? It's not going to get any easier."

Viola sighed.

"I know. Bye, though. Love you," she said before opening the door, she paused as she was shutting it.

"Love you too babe. If you don't call me this afternoon, I'll call you. You better not make me call you."

Viola grinned at her girlfriend's threat, but nodded anyways.

"Gotcha."

After she shut the door she watched the car pull away and drive off. Taking a deep breath, she made her way quickly across campus, avoiding what she knew to be the most populated areas. Finally at her dorm, she was met with silence.

Duke must be at breakfast, she thought, switching out her current books for her other set.

Taking a moment she looked around, before her eyes fell on the door.

Well, it's now or never, she thought dreadfully, remembering the prior day. She started slowly towards the door, taking a moment to brace herself, before she turned the knob, letting it swing open.

She stepped into the hall.

* * *

:D

Yay! Another update, and... what?


	4. Chapter 4

I'm driving my mom crazy. :D She's ready to ship me back to school, so... enjoy!

* * *

"Hey, there he is."

Viola looked up to see everyone on the stairs looking at her. She grinned, nodding to the crowd.

"What's up?" she greeted a group of boys.

"Ladies," she added smoothly as a pair of girls walked past her down the stairs. The looks she was receiving could only be considered as lusty.

Well, that's a big change from disgusted, she thought happily.

"Sebastian! Yo, man, I need to get through. Sebastian! Wait up!"

Viola paused, turning to look at Toby as he sprinted up the stairs, two at a time.

"What can I do for you dude?"

"I got lady troubles man. I need your help."

Viola grinned widely.

"Anything, you need. I got a lifetime of knowledge when it comes to this stuff."

Toby gave a grateful smile.

"Thanks dude. So right, there's this girl. A lot of people think she's... crazy. Creepy even. But I... I just like her, you know? I don't know why, I just do."

Viola listened as they walked through the double doors, nodding.

"But, well. We're definitely on opposite ends of the social spectrum, if you know what I mean. How do I, well... let her know without getting harassed by everyone for it?"

Viola slapped a hand on his shoulder.

"You really like her, right?"

"A lot."

"Then, man... sometimes you just have to go for it. There's always going to be people who don't like it, or don't approve, or... don't understand. But, in the end, it's worth it. Look at me and Kia."

Toby shot her a confused look.

"What's so odd about that?"

Viola froze, before shaking her head.

"Oh, well... you know. Our parents and stuff," she replied hastily, mumbling most of it as she silently cursed herself for the slip up. The dark skinned boy just shrugged it off, chalking it up to his friend's weird ways.

"Okay, so there's really no way to do this without getting ragged on, huh?"

Viola shook her head.

"Not really."

Toby sighed.

"Well... how do I do it, then? I mean, we don't really talk or hang out that much. Or at all."

Viola shrugged.

"Well... you need to walk before you can run, right? Baby steps bro. Start it small, talk to her in the hall, in class, just... idly chat. Nothing big, just set a foundation, you know? With that set, you can go from there."

Toby stopped for a moment, causing Viola to stop as well.

"Just... that simple?"

Viola grinned.

"Dude. First off, easier said than done. Secondly... most of the time the best solution is overlooked. Disregarded. Third, well... guys underestimate how a lot of girls appreciate the little things."

The black boy 'hmm'ed, nodding slowly.

"I guess that makes sense."

Viola nodded in agreement, thumping the boy on the back.

"Exactly. Let's go bro, class is calling."

"Thanks dude."

"No prob," Viola smirked with a sharp nod.

Oh. My. Gosh. Kia, Paul, girls... I love you all, she thanked silently.

She followed Toby into the classroom.

"Sebastian. My man!"

Viola refrained from staring at Duke when he greeted her. After a moment of shock she put on a smirk, nodding.

"What's up bro?" she replied, sliding into the seat across from him.

"So, uh..."

She looked at Duke as he hesitated.

"Who are all those girls?"

Viola bit the inside of her cheek, but couldn't contain the goofy smile.

"Just some old friends from Cornwall."

"Friends? Is that how all your friends are?"

"Only the ladies, man. Treat them good, and they shall return the favor."

"See? That's what I'm talking about!" Duke leaned over to punch Andrew's shoulder. The taller boy grinned.

"What about that last girl? She was a total bitch!"

Viola looked at Duke, confused.

"The last girl?"

"Yeah, not your girlfriend, that blonde that came in after you left? She tore Andy a new one and then your friend chewed her out."

Wait a minute... blonde... bitchy... could it be-

"Was her name Monique?"

"Yeah, I think it was. Dude, you had just missed her."

"Seriously? No joke?" Kia, you jinx. "Who told her off?"

"Uhm... a black girl. Short, long hair, very pretty."

"Yvonne? And I missed that?"

Viola laughed to herself, not paying attention to the rapidly filling up room.

"Dang, my luck. She's fierce when she wants to be."

"Yeah, we noticed."

"I take it you don't need an explanation?"

"Of the blonde? No way dude, she's a menace."

Viola nodded, whole heartedly agreeing.

"Totally dude."

A sudden noise from Viola's bag made the group jump.

"In the midnight hour she cries 'more, more, more',  
With a rebel yell, she cries 'more, more, more'.  
More, more, more."

She fished the phone out of her bag, looking at the ID.

Already? she thought, clicking the side button to end the ring. She grinned sheepishly up at the guys.

"Sorry dudes, the lady's calling."

Instead of calling back, however, Viola settled on a text message.

_'I'm in class, it's about to start. what's up? Is everything okay? Xoxo Vi'_

She sent the message, snapping the phone shut before anyone could read over her shoulder.

"Where were you last night, anyway?"

Viola grinned.

"Well... Kia's parents are out of town. She invited me over."

"You were gone all night, though!"

Viola shrugged.

"I stayed over. Really it's quite common when-"

"Oh my God. She's in our class."

Viola looked at Duke confused, before following his gaze. Finding the cute blonde, the pieces fell into place. She turned back to the captain, grinning widely.

"Dude, you're blushing. That's totally lame."

"I'm not blushing," he retorted, looking like he wanted to deck her on the spot. Viola caught Andrew's eye, and the pair sniggered while he wasn't looking.

"Sure you're not," she amended sarcastically. "Calm yourself Prince Charming."

"Okay, boys, pick a slip of paper. Your partner for the rest of the semester is whoever's name you draw," the teacher interrupted their conversation, shoving a bucket in the middle of their group. The four soccer players reached in, pulling out pieces of paper.

"Eunice Bates?" Duke asked the offending crumpled piece he had chosen. He looked up and over two tables, grimacing, and Viola leaned across to hit him.

"Be nice."

"Yeah, she's got a little something," Toby agreed with Viola, checking the brunette out. The gears shifted in her mind again, and Viola snorted, realizing the object of Toby's lady troubles.

Everyone ignored Andrew's comment as Viola read her slip out loud.

"Olivia Lennox."

She looked up, curious. The blonde seemed to have heard her name and waived with a coy nod, and Viola nodded back with a grin.

Maybe this class will be worth it, she thought.

"Wait, you know her?"

"I bumped into her after practice the first day. I was coming from the principal's office, she was going in. We only talked for a second."

"Yeah man, but she gave you the nod!"

"Yeah, it was a good one, too."

"Dude you have to trade with me!" Duke ordered, all but throwing himself across the table to get the paper. Viola dodged back, spinning out of reach.

"I can't do that. She heard me call her name."

"So?"

Viola rolled her eyes, grabbing the notebook she had left on the desk.

"Hello again. I don't believe we officially met. I'm Sebastian," Viola greeted, sliding easily into the seat across from the blonde. The girl shot her a stunning smile, taking her hand.

"Olivia. Nice to see you again."

Viola nodded in agreement before leaning forward, as if preparing to pitch an idea.

"Okay, well... I have to be honest about this. Biology? Not really my specialty. Dissecting things? Kinda creeps me out. I think you'll have to take charge on this."

The blonde girl stared at her in a mixture of surprise and amusement.

"Wow. Most men would never admit that."

Viola froze.

"Oh, right. Well... I mean. Kia doesn't have a problem with these sorts of things, so it wasn't really an issue before. She's very... assertive."

"Kia?" the blonde asked, interested. "That's... your girlfriend?"

Viola nodded with a grin.

"Yep. Sixteen months strong."

Olivia seemed to pout.

"So it's serious?"

Viola nodded, not catching onto the blonde's purpose.

"Pretty serious. It's chill, she's one of my best friends, we've known each other since elementary school, so... we're a good match. She keeps me grounded."

Olivia chuckled at that.

"How grounded?"

Viola shifted, embarrassed.

"I have been known to go off on a tangent," she admitted reluctantly. "Fantastically so."

The blonde's lips quirked.

"Well that's great. You know, for you, that you have her."

Viola nodded, smiling.

"Yeah, it really is."

As if cueing into their conversation, Billy Idol started blaring from her phone on the desk. She flipped it open, clicking the 'read' button.

_'sorry Vi. I was just wondering, how's everything so far? xo-Kia-'_

Viola shrugged apologetically to Olivia for the interruption, but quickly filled in her message, shutting the phone with another click.

"So, now that we know all about my love life, what about yours?"

Olivia smiled sadly, shaking her head.

"Newly single."

Viola winced.

"Sorry. Was it a bad one?"

The blonde shrugged.

"Could've been worse, it just felt real bad for a while."

Viola nodded before giving the girl a sympathetic smile.

"Well, you'll find someone who's just right for you, don't worry."

Olivia's blue eyes danced with amusement, though Viola could still feel the depressed air surrounding the girl.

"And you're sure about that, oh wise one?"

Viola leaned back, nodding smugly.

"Well, I am a love expert, if you must know."

The other girl raised one perfectly shaped eyebrow.

"Really?"

Viola grinned, nodding proudly.

"Really. You want to know what I think?"

"What do you think?"

Viola glanced at Duke out of the corner of her eye.

"Are you kidding? A girl like you? There's definitely a guy out there, _not_ a creepy one," she added for good effect, throwing a glance sideways at Malcolm. "Who's dying to make you very happy."

Viola was awarded with a wide grin, and she mentally patted herself on the back.

Oh yeah. I just made her day, she thought satisfied.

"You're a good person, you know? Kia is very lucky."

Viola shrugged, suddenly bashful.

"We both are," she corrected with a shy smile, thinking of her girlfriend. Before their conversation could run any deeper, the bell rang and the teacher finally took place at the front of the room.

"Okay class, I would like to welcome you to your first day of AP Biology! Don't get too excited, though, we're going to jump right into things! How exciting, right? Now, today we will be going over the syllabus before starting on the anatomy of a frog. Now this will be very important for next week when we have a practical on it."

Viola grimaced, making a gagging noise. Olivia shot her an amused glance, before flipping open her notebook to a clean page. After a moment, Viola reluctantly mimicked the blonde's actions.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

Viola took her time packing up at the end of class, half mindedly returning Olivia's farewell before glaring down at her hardly legible notes.

At least I write like a guy, she thought with some amusement, finally leaving the room. Just as she passed into the hall, a hand grabbed the back of her jacket, and she groaned at the pressure at her neck.

"You, sit," Duke ordered, shoving her into the chair. "You move. Come on, go!" he snapped at the boy sitting in the area.

The curly haired kid beat it surprisingly fast, and Duke waited until he was gone before turning back.

"Did you say anything about me?"

Viola looked at him, confused.

"Uhm... sorry? Say anything to who?"

"To Olivia dude! Did you?"

"Not really, was I supposed to?"

Duke let out a strangled huff of air, bowing his head before looking back up.

"Dude, Hastings you're killing me. This is perfect opportunity! You get to spend an hour with her, every other day, you can... you can make her like me. Make her go out with me."

"Uhm. How long has she known you again?"

"A few years, why?"

"She's had all that time to do it before. Why would now be any different?"

"What? Come on! You're a professional with the ladies. You can actually talk coherently around her."

Viola raised an eyebrow, doubtful. Duke bit the inside of his lip for a moment before his eyes lit up.

"Dude. If you do this for me, I'll work with you in soccer. Enough to make first string."

Viola perked up by that.

"By the Cornwall game?"

Duke nodded, fully confident.

"Absolutely."

Viola grinned, nodding.

"Okay, yeah. Deal. But I call the shots on Olivia."

"Anything. You're the man."

Hardly, Viola thought.

"Yes I am," she agreed out loud.

"After school then. We'll get some groundwork in before practice."

Viola nodded.

"I'm there."

"You better be."

When Duke finally walked off, Viola let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

I thought I was dead at first, she thought. Totally worth it. Shaking her head she climbed to her feet, starting towards her next class.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

"Okay, so what I've noticed is you're good with moving the ball, and you have good aim and soccer sense. You can get around players, get up field, no problem. You're also good at lifting the ball, if we can just mix both of them together, mix in the lifting more, you'll be a bit stronger," Duke informed her, as they stood in the middle of the practice field almost an hour before practice was scheduled to start. "You definitely need to work on building up your legs. You have good stamina, but not so much strength. At this level, strength is very important, there's a lot of contact. Not only that, but you have to hit the ball quick and hard, both for passing and shooting. A moment hesitation will do you in."

Viola nodded. She knew most of that already, but it was reassuring to have someone willing to break her into the habit.

"What's the plan then, Captain?"

"Well, we'll need to work on your legs, fast. I'd suggest stairs for that," he replied, waving to the bleachers of the stadium. "But wait until after practice. Coach doesn't like people coming on the field already beat. You'll also need to get into the weight room. I can teach you some fancy moves, just for flash, but... most of your problem actually is your lack of strength."

Duke lightly punched her shoulder, and Viola caught herself before she could fall.

"See? You're nothing but skin and bones."

Viola let her shoulders drop, wanting to defend herself. He did have a point, so she fought the urge back, huffing.

"Well, Kia doesn't have a problem with it," she muttered instead, kicking a clot of dirt on the field.

"I think your girlfriend and Coach are two very different people, with their eyes on very different things," Duke pointed out, and Viola sighed.

"Yeah, I know."

"Okay, we'll start off easy, because it's before practice. Work on what you're good at. Let's see you move the ball," Duke tossed the ball into her chest. Viola caught it with a slight grunt, before placing it down on the ground.

"Like how?"

"You pick. It's your specialty. Pull something I wouldn't expect, having the shock element is a good card to hold."

Viola thought on it for a second.

"Something you don't think I would know how to do, you mean?"

Duke nodded.

"Something like that. Just... try to get by me," he confirmed, back-pedaling several yards. Viola nodded, toeing the ball, before she started at a light jog, moving it up field. As she picked up speed, her mind wandered back to the tape she and her team had been studying at the end of their last season. Almost all the girls had gotten together to try and reproduce the moves, on several occasions.

As the two players drew closer together, Viola put her plan into action, tapping the ball with the toe of her left foot sideways. With her right heel, she cut it sharply up, lifting the ball flawlessly off the ground. She paused mid-stride as the outside of the same foot caught the black and white orb in mid-air, hitting it again. It arched perfectly over Dukes head as she dodged around to retrieve it behind the boy.

Biting her lower lip she spun once she had trapped the ball, meeting Duke's startled eyes with a wide grin.

"How the hell did you do that?"

Viola shrugged.

"We practiced it a lot," she said easily. He didn't even bother to ask who 'we' included.

"Why didn't you pull that at tryouts? Dude, you would've owned them."

Viola shrugged again.

"I don't know. It didn't really occur to me."

Duke shook his head in wonder, staring at the smaller player.

"Alright, so you do have some moves. Maybe we'll just work on kicking until practice."

Viola nodded, eager to learn something.

"Okay!"

The pair made their way to the nearest goal, stopping just inside the box. It was there the team found them a half hour later, Duke drilling Viola on how to use her size to her advantage.

"Gentlemen! Circle up, now!"

All pre-practice action ceased, and the team gathered around the coach, awaiting his instructions.

"We will be doing a lot of conditioning today. It'll be different from yesterday morning, but conditioning none-the-less. If I'm pleased with the effort, we'll end with a few drills, maybe a small scrimmage. Clear?"

"Yes sir," the group agreed. Dinklage nodded, turning to the stands.

"Stairs today."

Duke elbowed the Hastings' twin lightly as he passed.

"It's like he read my mind."

Viola only glared, convinced that the two had spoken earlier in the day.

Great, she thought glumly. Double time on the bleachers. Joy.

* * *

Yes, that is all I shall have for now. Thank you so much for the feed back! It's very motivational. :D


	5. Chapter 5

Ohhh, I am so sorry that I haven't updated in so long! I've just ended out my second year in college, but summer's been hectic (and not all in a good way). I will try to do better, but sadly I cannot promise anything. This has been the year from hell.

:(

But here. I put in the time, so enjoy. I am trying to get back into my other stories, so if you're loyal readers... don't give up yet. :D

* * *

Viola's foot vibrated the desk in front of her, causing the boy to shoot an annoyed look at the soccer player. Rolling her eyes, she turned to the window, staring out through the rain.

Though not confirmed, she was almost positive that practice would be cancelled for the day, seeing as half of the field was flooded. She sighed audibly.

"I'm sorry my lecture isn't so stimulating Mr. Hastings. Would you like to take over?"

It took Viola a moment to remember that she was currently a 'mister'. Her head whipped around to the teacher, a stout, balding man with a bushy mustache.

"No sir."

Mr. Strader gave a small hum before turning back to the board, book still in hand.

"Do try to pay attention."

With another sigh, this time silently, she turned back out the window; like she did not already know about the female reproduction system. Her legs were sore from the extra conditioning the day before, not to mention this morning she had woken up feeling like someone had punched her in the gut, a sure sign of her approaching period. Her hand moved to her pocket when it suddenly started vibrating.

Flipping the screen open, she read the text.

_'you in tonight? xo-Kia-'_

Viola immediately replied affirmatively, shutting the phone quietly. Only moments later her phone vibrated again.

_'okay, Paul will get you after you let out xo-Kia-'_

Viola shut her phone again, looking back at the clock. Just one more block after this and she would be free. The last few minutes seemed to drag on, but finally the bell did ring and she was the first out of the room, heading down to the Art and Music section of the academic building. Her brother had taught her how to read music and play the guitar when they were younger. Though not as well practiced as him, she could hold her own if she tried to.

She passed Duke on the way there who confirmed that practice was, indeed, cancelled. The following day was Saturday, and practice was not until the afternoon, so Viola was extra ecstatic. Music class went by fast as it was little more than a review for her, and soon she was sprinting her way through the massive downpour to the faint form of Paul's car.

"Vi, you're getting my seat soaked."

Viola just rolled her eyes as she clipped her seatbelt into place.

"I'm sure your seats will be fine," she retorted, ripping off the drenched wig as they pulled away from the school. The fake eyebrows and sideburns followed.

"This is such a hassle," she informed the hairstylist.

Paul shrugged, not remorseful.

"It was your idea."

Viola rolled her eyes, nodding.

"Yeah. Yeah, I know," she mumbled, grimly. She shook her hair out of her face.

"What's on the agenda tonight, then?"

"Well, after you've put in such a solid week of hard practice," Paul started. Viola grinned. Duke had not let up at all during that whole week, and between her solo-morning sessions, one-on-one with Duke, and then team practices; she was as run down as could be imagined. But even in just the last three days, since they have been working together, she knew she had improved a lot. "And your second favorite blondes finally have a date tonight-"

"That took so much work!"

"Well, in either case, we are going to do a little spying on them."

"Cesario's?"

Paul nodded.

"Cesario's," he confirmed. "Afterwards, Kia has been nagging for a trip to the city."

Viola sat up, excitedly.

"We're going clubbing?"

Paul grinned with another nod.

"We're going clubbing."

Viola cheered, as Paul pulled into the driveway at her house.

"Good, my mom isn't home," Viola observed, not seeing her car. "I would hate to have to explain to her why I'm wearing Sebastian's uniform."

"Well, Kia and Yvonne are going to be here in about ten minutes, so that should be enough time to doll yourself up."

Viola nodded.

"Come on then," she invited him into the house. The rain had slowed a bit, but it was still coming down hard. Viola used the spare key to let herself in the house.

"What do you think?" she asked, stepping into her doorway. She twirled.

A pair of black, skin tight leggings went just past her knees, and she had paired it with a green tunic styled shirt that ended at almost the middle of her thighs.

"What shoes?"

Viola held up a simple pair of black flats. Paul was nodding.

"That works well."

"Yeah, I was thinking of you when I picked it out," she said, with a smirk. She returned to her room, brushing out her hair. Paul came up with a handful of styling mousse, running it through the long strands and fluffing it out for volume.

"Let's see her keep her hands off of you tonight," he said with a matching grin.

"I like how your mind works."

There was a sudden pounding at the front door, and the pair quickly made their way to the front door, Viola almost tumbling down the stairs as she slipped on the shoes.

"You look great," Kia walked over, giving her a once up.

Viola grinned.

"Yeah, well it's mostly natural, but-"

Kia cut her off with a long kiss.

"Okay, okay... save some for tonight," Paul ushered them out of the house, handing Viola a black jacket. Viola pulled the hood up after she slipped it on, before stepping off of the front steps and into the downpour.

"Come on!"

Kia dragged her over to Paul's car. Yvonne's was parked next to it, and Viola had already called her mom to inform her that it would be there when she got home.

"I am so glad we didn't have to practice in this," Viola admitted once they had started off towards Illyrian territory. She leaned her head on Kia's shoulder, breathing in the other girl.

"Me too," Kia said, wrapping her arm around Viola. The two sat there in a comfortable silence as Yvonne and Paul argued over the radio station.

"Okay," he said, breaking the two out of their peaceful moment five minutes later. It was still nearly fifteen minutes before Duke and Olivia were set to arrive, but the Cornwall group knew that they would hang out at the small restaurant for at least an hour or so. They went in and found a booth on the closer wall, with a view of almost the whole room.

"You know... I think it's been a long time since it was just all of us," Yvonne waived to the four of them, "together, hanging out."

"I think you're right," Paul said, in surprise. "We need to get back into that."

Both Kia and Viola voiced their agreement.

"So what can I get for you today?" a dark haired lady asked, flipping open a note pad.

Paul looked at the girls.

"I'll have a coke."

"Sprite."

"Iced tea," Viola decided, avoiding soda. Duke had been nagging at her diet.

"Just some water," Yvonne said.

"Can we also get some wings- you guys want wings?" Paul asked, turning away from the waitress. The three girls answered affirmatively.

"Okay, wings, just to start us off."

The server marked the order down, nodding her head as she left.

The door opening caught Viola's eye.

"Okay, Duke and Olivia are here."

Paul looked at his watch.

"They're five minutes early."

Viola shrugged.

"Hopefully that's a good sign," she said, leaning back to look behind Kia, as they took the table directly across the aisle from the group.

"Lover boy looks nervous."

"We've been working on his girl-skills," Viola admitted. "It's been slow progress, but maybe he can pull something out."

Viola flipped open her menu, subtly spying around it. Duke was nervously shooting looks everywhere but at his date, while Olivia looked somewhere between amused and worried for the soccer player.

Kia let a low whistle.

"She's pretty," she commented idly. Viola grinned, scooting closer to the other brunette so she could lean against her.

"Yeah, but there's no contest."

Paul and Yvonne rolled their eyes at the love struck pair, but decided to look over the menu. Unable to kiss her girlfriend, both Duke and Olivia were under the impression that Kia was dating Sebastian; Kia simply intertwined her fingers with Viola's, shooting a grin at the other girl. Viola grinned back, before shifting her gaze to her roommate again.

She could hear them without too much trouble.

"I'll have lemonade, and she'll have a- w-wait. What do you want?"

Olivia grinned hesitantly, looking over the menu.

"Diet coke."

Viola rolled her eyes at the predictable drink.

"What does she need diet for? She's fricken tiny already," she grumbled. Kia giggled at the commentary, but did not reply.

"So, uhm... uh, seen any good movies lately?"

Viola allowed herself a fist-pump, discretely hidden under the table, silently commending Duke on a picking a good topic.

At least he did not use the cheese idea, she thought silently.

"Maria and I saw The Devil Wears Prada the other day."

Duke visibly relaxed at her smooth reply.

"Haven't seen it," he admitted after a moment. "How was it?"

Olivia nodded, with a small smile.

"It was pretty funny. More of a chick flick though."

Duke nodded.

"Yeah, that's what I heard."

Olivia shrugged.

"I liked it. What about you?"

Duke rubbed the back of his neck as the attention turned to him.

"Well... I saw We Are Marshall, with Toby and Andrew. It's based on a real story."

"Sport movie?"

Duke nodded.

"Football."

"Life-based movies are usually pretty good," Olivia decided. Duke grinned.

"Yeah, I usually like them."

Viola turned away from the pair when the movie Grandma's Boy came up, satisfied that things were flowing between the two. The waitress walked off as Paul reported their order, with the wings set out in the middle of the table.

"Just one more week," Yvonne finally started their own conversation.

Kia bumped Viola's shoulder with her own.

"Yeah, you excited?"

"You can't even begin to imagine," Viola affirmed, shaking her head with a fake shiver. "Guys are so... ewww."

"Hey!"

"Oh come on Paul, you're like... half female yourself," Kia defended the statement with a grin.

Viola and Kia broke into laughter as Yvonne looked away, covering her smile with her hand.

"Yeah, you don't count," the black girl finally said, after a moment of composing herself.

"Well in that case Vi's half guy."

Viola snorted.

"Like hell."

She took a piece of chicken, gladly taking a bite before she froze.

"These... are really... hot!"

Viola coughed, taking a large gulp of iced tea.

"Yeah, they're spicier than usual," Paul agreed, eating them without a problem

The four of them devoured the wings slowly, not in a hurry, but simply enjoying the conversation and company. The pizza came before they were done, and gradually they started on that as well.

"Hey Vi, what would a chair look like if everyone's knees were bent the other way?"

Viola thought over Paul's question before breaking into laughter. The group had transitioned from conversation to asking hypothetical questions.

"Fricken messed up that's what. Lounge chairs everywhere, with elevated foot rests."

Duke and Olivia were still going strong, and if Viola was judging right, the small blonde even seemed to be enjoying herself. The older Hastings twin grinned at the thought.

Good, he will be really good to her, she thought, before turning back to her friends.

"Okay, well why do they report power outages on TV?"

Paul paused at Yvonne's question, before he finished chewing his bite of pizza.

"That's a really good question. I mean, if the power's out, then people already know so they don't need the notice. But also, they can't even see the notice, because the TV's not working because there's no power."

The four friends fell into silence as they thought it over.

"Huh, never thought about that before," Kia finally broke them all out of their thoughts.

"Odd how that goes isn't it?"

Kia grinned at her girlfriend, winking.

"We really need to do this more," Kia decided.

"You know," Paul started. "I think that is a great-"

"Viola Hastings!"

The soccer player's face paled slightly, before she recovered in record time.

"Oh hey Monique. Looking nice today, are those new pants? They look hott."

With an annoyed scoff, the blonde gave her a disgusted look.

"Well not that you need to know, but yes, they are new. And keep your gay-tendencies to yourself, dyke. I am just looking for your brother. Where is he?"

Viola shrugged, not noticing that Duke and Olivia had fell silent, recognizing her surname. The two Illyrians were watching the altercation with interest.

"I don't know. Probably off with his band doing some... you know... guitar thing."

She made a strumming motion to add to her point.

"Well when you see him next, do tell him that it is not over. And I am not happy with him."

"I'll get right on that," she lied easily. Monique did not register her tone, too lost in her own dilemma.

It was probably a good thing for the group that she did not pick up on it.

"That's all," the blonde dismissed, as though they had come up to her table and started bothering her. "Continue about your ways, polluting society with your pathetic selves."

Paul and Kia were staring at Monique, mouths parted slightly at her attitude while Yvonne pursed her lips, leaning forward on the table, ready to snap at the Barbie. The blonde left the group before she had a chance to say anything though, making her way back to her own friends before they left the restaurant.

"It's always such a pleasure, talking to her," Viola said lightly, looking at the door that she had left through. She was not fazed at the blonde, more used to her than her friends were.

"Very," Paul said, sarcastically. Yvonne finally let out a breath, calming down slowly.

"I can't believe you actually tried to hit on her," Kia said with a grin. There was a hint of warning in her eyes, and Viola just smiled brightly.

"Trust me; I was just trying to get under her skin. Eww, she's such a bitch, honestly I mean... what did Sebastian see in her?"

"Good question," Kia agreed with smile.

The group finished up, leaving the money on the table as they left the restaurant, the two blondes intrigued at the scene that just played out before them.

It was another half hour later before Duke and Olivia made their way from the restaurant.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

Viola spun around, as her and Kia fell into the beat of the newest song, both girls grinning.

_"Groove, slam, work it back. Filter that, baby bump that track."_

"I love this song!" Viola shouted over the noise. Kia only agreed, dancing closer to her girlfriend. "She is fricken amazing."

"This was Paul's best idea yet."

Viola laughed, nodding in agreement. The beat was one easy to dance to, and Viola felt as though she were soaring, in a good mood from both the song and her company. She closed her eyes, getting lost in the song.

_"I'm so starstruck, baby cause you blow my heart up."_

"Those two will be at it all night if you don't give them a time limit," Yvonne informed her hair-dressing friend, as they watched the two brunettes monopolize their small part of the dance floor. She rolled her eyes when the pair shared a kiss, turning from the scene with a small grin.

Paul shrugged.

"Another hour or two won't hurt."

"We've already been here for three hours!"

"It's not even midnight."

"But still!"

"Okay, I know where you're going with this," he said finally.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah, come on."

Despite her annoyance, she let her friend pull her onto the dance floor. It really was not that hard of a decision, Paul was a very good dancer.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

"Please? Can we please watch it?"

"You have practice in two hours!"

"And the movie is hardly an hour and a half! Come on Kia, please?"

"We always watch it."

"Only because it's absolutely amazing. Please?"

Kia rolled her eyes at her girlfriend's pleading look, but Viola was persistent.

"Please? Pleeease?"

"Okay. Okay fine."

Viola gave a whoop, jumping from the bed to grab the movie off the shelf and put it in. She slid back under the warm covers, snuggling close to her girlfriend.

"Next time I'm choosing it. No questions, no arguments."

"Deal," Viola grinned with a nod.

"Good."

Ninety minutes later found the girls watching the end scene of the movie, where both of the main characters were running in and out of jammed cars to get to each other.

Viola was bobbing her head, humming along with the song, smiling all the way through the credits.

"That song is gonna be stuck in my head all day," Kia informed her girlfriend, as she finally got out of the bed, changing into a pair of jeans and a zip-up sweater before shutting off the TV.

"Imagine me and you, I do. I think about you day and night, it's only riiight," Viola sang, surprisingly on key. Kia rolled her eyes, knowing her girlfriend was doing it on purpose. "To think about the girl you love, and hold her tight, so happy togetheeer."

Viola's laughter followed her out of the room, and despite her pseudo-irritation, Kia was grinning the whole time.

* * *

Thank you very much for all your support! I am so grateful for the reviews. Anyhow, I know it's been a long time since I last updated (I'm really sorry. Really) but I don't think my writing has changed too much, do you? Hopefully it hasn't gotten worse! -.-

And on that note, I neither own the song Starstruck (Lady Gaga) nor the movie Imagine Me & You. Now, I know Starstruck is much more recent then when She's the Man takes place, but I really like it, and I thought that it would fit well into here, so we'll just… ignore that bit.


	6. Chapter 6

So I know that my updates are horribly long between each, but unfortunately starting tonight, I will be without both internet, and a computer, for the next three months (non-negotiable). I will have a notebook, however, so I will write a bit when I can. I just can't guarantee how much that will be. I will be back to finish this, though, don't worry.

Enjoy :)

* * *

Viola ran along the right side of the field, waiving one arm at her teammate.

"Tobe! TOBY! I'm open!"

The shout was recognized, and the black boy gave the ball to her in a quick, hard pass. She caught it easily, not breaking stride as she dodged around one of the penny-shirted opponents. The in-practice scrimmage was as intense as a real game, but Viola enjoyed every minute of it. Coming up on her next obstacle, she fell into the motions of a rainbow kick, lifting the ball to sail along her back and to her left, arching smoothly over the other player in mid-slide tackle.

Duke grabbed it after one bounce and, quicker than anyone could blink, Viola dodged around her current opponent, deftly avoiding both the pennied jersey and the tackle, and breaking into the clear.

"DUKE!" she bellowed, unnecessarily loud, not loosing stride. Duke fired a hard pass to her and, faking like she was going to catch it, she sped up, drawing the goalie to the side as the ball rolled through the box and into the net.

"Psych dude," she laughed at the Italian boy's surprised face. Duke thumped her on the back, and she traded high-fives with Toby.

"Sebastian man, you're blowing my mind!"

Viola nodded, still grinning.

"I've been told I have that effect on people," she panted slightly, not winded but a bit out of breath. Toby laughed, and pushed her away.

"Oh, get out of here man."

With a grin, Viola obeyed the indirect order, falling into an easy jog next to Duke. She spied Dinklage out of the corner of her eye.

He was eying her with interest, and something suspiciously similar to appraisal.

"Dude, you're almost in."

"Better be," she replied to her roommate's statement. "These past few days have been a nightmare."

"Oh yeah, I'm sure your girl has been helping you recover."

Viola grinned.

"Damn straight she has."

"Okay men, twelve laps around the track, when I blow my whistle you sprint, when I blow it a second time you jog. Got it? Let's go!"

The team jumped into motion, quickly obeying the directions as to avoid further abuse.

* * *

Little over twenty minutes later, the players were ready to drop. Viola was doubled over, dripping sweat as she breathed heavily. Three miles in intervals of sprints and jogs was not pleasant, nor easy by any standards when you put it at the end of practice. Grimacing, Viola turned away as one of her fellow second-stringers began emptying the contents of his stomach into the trash barrel near the field.

Like most of the first stringers, the lone girl was was wiped without having been pushed to the edge.

"Good job men. Get in a good stretch then get out of here... don't need to see you until Saturday afternoon."

Viola mentally rejoiced at the prospect of a day off, before remembering the carnival that was scheduled.

She groaned, letting herself collapse onto the ground.

"Dude, you okay?"

She looked up to her roommate.

"Yeah... perfect," she answered dryly. Duke reached down and all but picked her off the ground, settling her on her feet.

"You're not that tired."

"My mom has me working at a carnival tomorrow," she replied. "I just remembered. The thought of it did what practice didn't."

"You have to go to that too?"

"Yeah. You'll be there?" she asked, curiosity winning over.

"Yeah, my mom's making me."

Viola grunted, as she walked with her roommate back to the locker room. Bidding him goodbye, she escaped back to the dorm room, shedding her uniform gratefully as she used a spare towel to dry the sweat off of her. Finished, she promptly slathered lotion and deodorant on, before getting dressed just as quickly. Fresh smelling, she then made her way down to the cafeteria, gathering a tray of food before sitting at her usual table. She was only seated for a few minutes when Olivia appeared next to her.

"Hey Sebastian!"

Viola nodded, chewing her mouthful of pasta. Swallowing the food, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand before rubbing the excess sauce onto the napkin that was in her lap, masking her more lady-like tendencies.

"Olivia. What's up?"

"Have you seen Duke around?"

Viola hid her grin with some difficulty.

"He should be here any minute, I think. He was just changing and showering real quick."

Olivia nodded slowly, mouth forming an 'O'.

"How did your date go?"

"Surprisingly well. I enjoyed myself a lot more than I thought I would," she said, as though divulging a huge secret.

Viola nodded.

"That's good! Really... is it going to happen again?"

Olivia hummed to herself.

"Maybe," she said, hesitantly. Though an indecisive answer, Viola felt like it was a positive outcome, considering her original reaction to the concept.

"H-hey Olivia," Duke stammered only slightly as he slowly set his tray down to her other side. The blonde offered him a small smile.

"Hey Duke. How was practice?"

"Good. I-it was... good," Duke nodded. After an awkward pause, he seemed to gain more confidence. "How was your day?"

"Kind of boring. Maria went home for the weekend, so I didn't really have much to keep me busy."

Duke nodded quickly.

"Yeah, that... sounds like it would suck."

He let out a slow breath. Viola looked between the two. With everything considered, they had made remarkable progress.

"A-are you going to the carnival tomorrow?" Duke asked slowly. Olivia nodded.

"Yeah, my mom talked me into volunteering at it."

Duke grinned slightly.

"So didn't Sebastian's. A-and I have to go too. Maybe I'll see you there?"

Olivia nodded, returning his grin with one of her own.

"Sure. Who knows, it could be fun."

Duke's grin was more confident this time. Toby and Andrew joined the trio of students, and dinner continued. The boys did not seem to know how to act around Olivia at first, but eventually they grew comfortable with her presence, and the topic ranged from school events to Junior League.

Though she had long since finished her meal, Viola was enjoying the conversation, as the group was still in the cafeteria nearly a half hour after dinner was finished being served. There were few other people there caught up in conversation as well. Duke had loosened up considerably, lightly flirting with Olivia when the chance presented itself.

With another hidden grin, Viola noticed that she was slowly reciprocating the talk.

"Baby, everybody's had to fight to be free.  
You see you don't... have... to live like a refugee.  
(Don't have to live like a refugee)."

Viola recognized the personalized ring tone immediately, and she froze for just a second.

"Hey man, you okay?" Toby asked the smaller teen. Viola looked around the table, eyes wide.

"Yeah. Yeah, why wouldn't I be? I gotta take this," she excused herself quickly, as her friends gave her weird looks over her odd reaction to Tom Petty. She beat it out of the cafeteria, flipping the phone open as she ducked around the corner.

"Sebastian!" she hissed into the receiver. "How are you using your cell?"

"I kinda didn't have any quarters. And hello to you too."

Viola sighed.

"Hi," pleasantries over, she resumed her disapproving tone. "Are you kidding? Mom is going to know that you made a long distance call!"

She could almost hear the wince in his voice.

"I know... I have it all planned out though," he started. Viola sighed.

"Look, I don't want to know. I'm already covering your ass a lot right now, I don't want to further my criminal acts as an accessory."

"You already are one," he pointed out. She rolled her eyes, making her way towards her dorm.

"Whatever. What's up?"

"Dude, Vi, they totally love us here. Like, this is exactly what what we need to get out there!"

Viola grinned slightly. Though annoyed, she was happy for her brother.

"Well it better be worth it," she warned lightly. "That's great."

"Yeah. How are things on your end?"

"Hectic. The carnival is tomorrow. I have to be both me _and_ you."

"I'm sorry-"

"Whatever. Just know that you owe me _big_, and I don't mean like chores for a month big. We're talking first-born _son _big."

"Have I said that I love you today?"

Viola chuckled.

"Sweet talking isn't gonna work right now. But I'll keep that in mind."

"Seriously. Thank you. And I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it."

She chatted with him for several more minutes, getting an update on his latest gigs and daily happenings before bidding him goodbye. By this time she was back in the dorm room, and she looked at the clock on the bedside table.

It was just past 6. Pursing her lips, Viola flipped open her phone, quickly composing a text message and sending it off. The reply came back just a minute later, and Viola grinned at the answer.

_'totally there babe. don't worry we got your back. xo-Kia-'_

The brunette settled into her brother's bed, cradling a soccer ball to her chest happily. Duke shot her a queer look when he entered, taking in her wide grin and position on the bed.

"Good call?" he asked hesitantly.

Viola's grin widened.

"Yeah actually."

He shook his head with a small grin at his roommates oddity.

"So your date went well then?" Viola asked. Duke nodded.

"Yeah man. I think I'm doing good with Olivia."

"Happy to hear that dude," she responded seriously. "Really. That's good."

Duke was nodding, with a surprisingly shy grin on his face.

"Thanks again."

Viola returned his grin.

"Anytime man."

"So, I think coach is gonna make you first string soon. If he doesn't, he's crazy."

Viola laughed.

"Aw, man I hope so. That's exactly what I need... er, want. What I've been working for."

Duke did not seem to notice her trouble with the phrasing.

"Long day tomorrow, huh?"

Viola nodded slowly, before she reached into the backpack, pulling out the music book. She flipped open to one of the worksheets in the back that was due the next day - Friday. With the carnival after school in the afternoon, and her debutant luncheon on Sunday, it would still be a long time before the Cornwall game, which was the upcoming Tuesday. With a sigh, Viola unconsciously shifted her wig back to scratch the line of her hair, before adjusting it back into place. Duke had put on a soccer game and did not notice even when she started on the work.

Viola remembered the circle of fifths from when her mother had made her take piano lessons when she was younger. Because of this, the worksheet was finished rather quickly, and not moving from her bed, she joined Duke in watching the game on the small TV.

* * *

The day went by too quickly to be natural, as though the universe was playing on her reluctance to go to the carnival. Nevertheless she packed a her backpack with the second set of clothing before heading off with Duke, Toby, and Andrew.

"Hey Sebastian!"

Viola looked up as their group entered the gates.

"Hey Olivia. You working?"

The blonde nodded, glancing at Duke before turning her attention back to the brunette.

"I'm stuck at the kissing booth."

Viola gave her a sympathetic smile.

"Yeah, me too - er, my sister I mean. _I_ have to help sell popcorn."

"Your sister's helping?"

"By force. With incredible reluctance. Yep."

"I'll probably see her then."

"Most likely."

"Well I got to go. You guys should stop by."

With another discrete glance to Duke, she grinned at the group before heading off.

"I love carnivals," Duke stated finally, gaze following the petite blonde. He started heading off in her direction. Viola shook her head.

"Oh crap. Psycho-ex alert, I'm gonna catch you guys later," she bid her two teammates a hasty goodbye, beating it quickly away from the gates, and out of sight of the stuck-up blonde. She dodged around crowds of people, cutting off the line to the bathroom. In little over a minute, she was in the dress she had chosen for the day and packing her boy outfit into her bag, letting herself out.

She stared wide-eyed at the person she had cut off, who was studying her with something similar to confusion. She gave him a nervous grin, hurrying away from the scene again.

She hoped that no one from Illyria noticed that she had the same shoes on that 'Sebastian' was wearing that day.

Still just shy of running, she maneuvered her way through the crowds of people.

"Viola!"

Recognizing the voice, she ignored it.

"Hey, Viola, wait up."

A hand on her shoulder turned her around.

"What do you want, Drayton?"

"Oh come on, don't be like that."

She studied him in confusion.

"Be like what? I'm always like this."

"No you're not."

"Well, I guess I just make an exception when it comes to you. Get lost."

"Come on-"

But Viola pulled away, giving the boy a light shove in other direction before starting off again.

"There you are!"

Viola resisted the temptation to scream. Spinning around, she put on a bright, though clearly fake, smile.

"Hi mom," she forced cheer into her tone. Thankfully, her mother did not notice anything amiss.

"Viola, honey, you only have a twenty minutes before your shift starts, don't forget to be there. The kissing booth is over near the Ferris wheel."

"Yeah, okay mom. I'll remember that alright," she nodded, maintaining her tone.

"Have you seen your brother around anywhere?"

"You know what, I'll go find him now, okay. You just keep doing your job!"

"Thank you sweetie. Remember, twenty minutes!"

"Uh-huh. I'll be there."

_Unfortunately._

With another bright smile, she hurried off, into the crowds again. She looked at the rides, finally settling on a spinning one, where she climbed aboard, waiting for the ride to start before she started to change. After peeling off the fake side burn from the little girl, who looked more than assaulted, Viola stumbled off the ride. Her feet set down on the grass, and she froze.

"Sebastian? Sebastian!"

She recognized the voice easily, and without even thinking, she took off at a dead sprint, getting lost into the crowd as she ran from Monique. Passing the fortune telling stand, she idly nodded to Eunice, who was dressed as a teller, before continuing on her way.

"Anyone want to give it a shot? Come on! Yo, Sebastian, think you can dunk me?"

Viola froze at the taunt, turning to the dunking booth. Justin Drayton had changed into swim trunks, and he was sitting on the bench that suspended him above the vat of water. Narrowing her eyes, she nodded for a moment, before digging money out of her pocket and handing it to the host. He held out three balls.

"Come on Hastings, lets see what you got."

Pursing her lips, Viola threw the first ball, which fell shy of the mark, hitting the backdrop nearly a foot below the lever. Justin doubled over, laughing.

"Oh my God, you throw like a girl!" he was gasping for air.

Gritting her teeth, Viola grabbed the next ball, pausing for only a second before she hurled it. This time it hit the backdrop several inches to the right.

"Correction, worse than a girl!"

Biting her lower lip, she turned from the target, moving to the game next to the dunk tank. She gave a polite smile, grabbing a ball from one girl who she guessed to be about her age.

"Sorry, just need to borrow this."

"What are you-"

Setting the ball down, she positioned herself, taking a few steps back. Looking up at the opposing goalie's confused expression, she grinned slightly. Stepping forward, she kicked the ball, hard. It hit the target square, and before Justin could say anything, he fell into the water.

Viola smirked, returning the ball to the other girl, nodding to her.

"Thank you," she said before turning away. Her grin only grew. "I may throw like a girl, but I kick like a boy," she said, more to herself with a grin. Behind her, she heard Justin break the surface, sputtering as he gasped for air. She felt good for about ten minutes before she caught sight of Monique again.

"Aww damn," she muttered, taking off at a run. Seeing her friends ahead, she grinned.

"Save me!" she ducked around them, diving into the bouncer. She struggled through her back pack, just as a mass of kids entered as well. Though thoroughly jostled, she managed to change, and fought her way out of the inflatable death trap. Hands were there to grab hers, and she felt herself be pulled from the contraption. Straightening, she panted slightly, brushing her hair out of her face.

"Having fun?" Paul teased.

"Tons," she said with sarcasm. With a quick kiss for Kia, she gave them a rueful smile, before starting off again.

_I hate today,_ she thought to herself. Her original run had faded to a trudge, though she still moved agilely through the mass of people. She made it across the carnival grounds to the kissing booth in record time. Pausing to look at the crowd, she grimaced seeing the long line of boys.

"Gross."

Maybe she could sneak away? But no, she though, catching sight of Olivia, who looked more than traumatized at the proceedings. Viola sighed, just shy of a whimper.

"Hey, I'm your replacement," she forced herself to offer, putting one hand on the blonde's shoulder.

"Oh thank God," Olivia jumped up from her seat before she got a good look at Viola. "Just a warning, that old guy? He's not chewing gum."

Viola suddenly felt sick, and she was sure it showed.

"Why do they continually force us into this archaic torture?" Viola wondered aloud, more to herself. Olivia, still next to her, heard however, and giggled.

"Something to do with grin and bare it, I think."

Viola sighed.

"Well, here goes nothing," she put her backpack down, stepping around the blonde. Settling onto the seat, she looked at the line, pausing at the next person.

Duke.

Great.

* * *

So my little sister totally borrowed my copy of _She's the Man_, and then lost it. I've made it official, she's never borrowing any more of my modern day Shakespeare movies. I mean, she already lost my_ 10 Things I Hate About You_ DVD too! That's two for two. Not happening.

See you in a while!


	7. Chapter 7

I'm back! On weekends, at least. Mostly. Sometimes. Okay, so only a little. But guess what? Not a whole lot of the story left, I don't think. :D Which is good, right? Of course. I do hope this is worth the wait! And I do hope the next one isn't so long. :)

* * *

Well, the carnival ended in a disaster, Viola was able to admit to herself. First she had to kiss Duke. Then he got in a fight with Justin over... who knows what, really. Something about being a guy, or testosterone. In either case, she was the one who _somehow _got blamed for the entire thing, which was very unfair, she decided.

To top it off, she hardly got to spend a second with Kia!

"Okay men, game day is almost here. I want you in the weight room for at least a half hour, then we'll have another light practice early this evening. That's an order."

At Dinklage's dismissal, Viola sighed.

"Dude, you alright?"

She met her roommate's eyes.

"Yeah, I'm... fine. Just tired."

"Well, come on. Lets get these weights out of the way, then you can be lazy all you want."

With her shoulders sagging, Viola agreed reluctantly. The transition from the field to the gym was quick, and with great force was Viola fighting the bar of weights. Duke seemed to have no problem with his 250 pounds. She struggled with just 80.

I am so weak, she thought miserably, sitting up.

Although it could just be fatigue, she added, trying to make herself feel better.

It didn't work.

"So, your sister..."

"Totally gay. Seriously, she defines the term," Viola cut-off the boy, confirming his suspicions.

"Yeah, uh, she didn't seem to like the idea of working at the kissing booth."

"I think our mom's trying to make her find an appeal in guys. It's definitely never gonna work."

She tried to convince herself that it wasn't odd, Duke asking questions. I mean, she was the first girl he had really kissed. Totally normal, right? She was attempting to stop all trains of thought, nevertheless.

"What about Olivia?"

Duke looked down, shrugging.

"Things are alright. We talk now. But she's just... I dunno. It's not really what I thought it would be. Don't get me wrong, she's still as great as ever, it's just... different."

"What are you talking about? What happened to the other night?"

"I dunno, yesterday was... weird... it just made me think."

Viola bit her lip. This was bad.

"Well, don't give up yet. You two have only really been on one date, right? Sometimes it takes more than that!"

She never had a problem admitting when she failed something, and she was fairly certain that she could add her little pep-talk to that list.

"You're right," Duke agreed, though he sounded far from convinced.

A short silence.

"Hey, even if it doesn't work out, you know... there's someone else out there. There's always some one else."

"Oh yeah?" Duke was smirking now, and his tone was challenging. "Even for you?"

Viola blinked at the change of conversation.

"I don't plan on ever finding that out," she finally said.

"Yeah, whatever bro," Duke just shook his head, before going back to his reps. Viola leaned against the machine, arms crossed as she studied him pensively. After a moment she shook her head.

What was it _with_ guys?

Rolling her eyes, Viola studied the gym. Olivia and her friend, Maria as her mind readily supplied for her, who had returned to school early, were over at the elliptical machines, chatting over only who knows what as they shot several glances their way. The small workout room was otherwise empty.

"Hastings!"

Viola snapped up from her lounging position at the sound of Dinklage's voice, as Duke finished his second set of reps.

"Yeah Coach?"

"First string, for the Cornwall game."

A red jersey hit her face, before falling into her arms, which she had unfolded to catch it. Looking down at the material, she studied the jersey in wonder.

_'Hastings'_ read across the top back, in large, white block print. Her number, 13, was present on both the back and the front of the shirt. It wasn't her favorite 'Cornwall' blue that she had worn for so long, but it still gave her a feeling of accomplishment.

"Really?"

"No I'm joking," Dinklage said, as if it were ludicrous to ask such a question. "Of course really."

With that he took his leave, not staying to listen to what he was sure to be an emotional response from the teen.

"Oh...my...God. Oh my God! I did it! Duke, I did it!"

Her temporary roommate was grinning at her excitement.

"I know dude, see, I told you."

"This is awesome," Viola gushed, not thinking of the picture she must make as she forgot herself. "Oh my God. I have to tell Kia!"

Duke blinked in amused confusion as the brunette hurried from the gym. Shaking his head with a half grin, he laid back on the cushioned bench, for his last set.

"Hey Duke."

The metal of bar made a loud clang against the holder, as Duke sat straight up.

"Olivia! Hi. H-how... what's up?"

"Nothing much," she said lightly, as if it was just a casual conversation. "What's with Sebastian?"

Duke grinned.

"He's first string."

"Really? I'm impressed. He's that good?"

"Just like he is with everything else," Duke shrugged it off. Olivia seemed to catch what he meant. For a moment he mulled over his roommates words. Just like with everything else rang through his head again.

"So, uhm... what are you doing tonight?"

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

"WHAT?"

Kia's shriek was a match even for her own.

"I know, right? We're _SO _getting our team back!"

"Viola... I love you. You're amazing. And we are so on for tonight."

The smaller brunette laughed into the phone. "You know, I always love how that sounds. Especially when it's coming from you."

"I'll pick you up at...you have practice this afternoon, right?"

"Game strategies mostly," Viola agreed. "Dinklage surprised us with an hour of conditioning this morning, but he still wants us to have our systems down. It's at 4:30."

"Well, I will be there to pick you up when you're done."

Viola grinned.

"It should only be an hour long."

"Can't wait, babe."

Viola could almost picture her girlfriend's wink that would have accompanied the statement, if they had been face-to-face.

"Me either. See you then."

With a sigh of content, Viola snapped the phone shut, before stopping in her pacing. She allowed herself to fall backwards, landing with a bounce on her brother's bed, as she hugged the jersey to her chest.

By the time Duke returned, she was already napping.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

"Orsino, you'll cut to the outside. Hastings, when he does this-"

"I'll cut inside of him, and cover the center," Viola readily supplied with a nod, following the marks on the small white board that Dinklage was detailing the play on.

"Come on boys! If the two main players involved in the play understand it, why can't the rest of you get your positions down? You're the ones with the easy jobs!"

No one had an answer for the coach.

"Let's run it again. When everything goes smoothly, practice will be done. But until then..."

He let the threat hang in the air, and after a quick glance to each other, the team firmly resolved to not let that happen. As they rose from their huddle and headed back towards the field, a lone figure leaning against the fence near the bleachers caught Viola's eye.

She gave her girlfriend a goofy grin. She saw Kia roll her eyes at her quirkiness, but the other brunette gave her a smile in return, none the less. With a slight shake of her head, Viola turned her attention back to the practice, where the play started with a throw-in from the center of the field.

It took only several tries before Dinklage decided it was good enough, and released them. Kia had already let herself onto the field, now leaning casually on the fence next to the locker rooms entrances. She waited patiently as Viola slung her bag and made her way over.

"Hey babe," Kia's accompanying smile was a coy one, and Viola could almost imagine the jealous thoughts she was sure to be running through her teammates' heads.

"You haven't been here long, have you?"

Viola could not recall when the other brunette had shown up, just her suddenly being there.

"Not too long, but don't worry. It was educational."

Kia's invasion of her personal space was something that Viola rarely objected to, and like usual, this was not one of those times. Viola dutifully ignored the whistles and cat calls from the boys as they shared a slow, lingering kiss.

"Ready to get out of here?"

Viola's grin was happy, and the sparkle in her eyes matched, reminding Kia of just why she loved the other girl so much.

"I've been ready since this morning," the twin replied, tone smooth since the guys were still watching.

"Well... let's go then, luv-ah."

"Let us, my lady," Viola returned, her tone lightly mocking as she stepped aside, holding one hand out. Kia, as per her natural charm, gave her girlfriend a coy wink, before firmly grabbing the outstretched hand to lead Viola towards the parking lot. Viola easily fell instep besides the taller girl, but let their fingers interlace for the short walk.

"So what's the plan?"

"Team meeting," Kia informed her. "At Yvonne's. But we still have about an hour before we need to be there."

"Sounds great, cause I really need a shower," Viola said, as they broke apart. Sliding into the passengers seat, she clipped the seat belt in place as Kia started the car.

"You don't smell too bad," Kia said, but didn't argue her point. "Only a little."

Viola laughed at that.

"Well, that's always reassuring. I'm just happy we have the day off tomorrow. I don't know how ready I'd be for the game on Monday, if I had to deal with practice on top of that lunch."

"Almost done, babe. Just two more days, and things are normal again."

"Finally."

"What's your mom making you wear tomorrow, anyways?"

"Thankfully, she's letting me choose."

Kia shot her a quick glance of surprise.

"Really? So what day is the world ending?"

"Well, I'm hoping it at least holds out for this season."

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

The seven other players of the Cornwall girl's team were already at Yvonne's when the pair arrived, exactly on time. At one time the girl had wondered how the couple could be late for everything else that didn't involve soccer, but she had long since given up trying to figure it out, as she stepped aside to admit her two friends.

When they all settled down at the large, dining room table, snacks spread out and a white-board-easel at one of the long ends, the meeting started.

"Okay, so our recruiting has been... kind of successful," Kate was a petite blonde who held position as one of the team's fullbacks. She was also notoriously known as a meticulous planner, and immediately took control of the information. "We have five maybes. Unfortunately, it's taken a lot of convincing and negotiating - all of them have decided to base their decision on the Cornwall/Illyria game."

With this she shot a pointed look at Viola, who was only the slightest bit surprised that anyone had let slip her involvement with the opposing team. What was the point of using that as a recruiting pitch if none of the recruits knew?

"Which I'm so gonna kick ass in."

"You better. Don't worry, I'm pretty sure none of them will give you away before then. Now, the only two slots we need to fill are fullback and halfback," Kate reiterated what they all already knew. "Thankfully, two of the girls are interested in those positions. Out of the other three, we have one interested in goalkeeping, and two utility girls. Neither of them have a preference of position, which means they'll probably be the most effective players for us to get, if none of the rest. Hopefully that's not our only choice, however."

Kate was also an avid scout and researcher and, though only a sophomore, she was usually the one who devised and trained the team in their game strategies when their coach gave her the opportunity.

"What else do we know about them?"

"Sarah is the only senior, she's the one interested in halfback. Her family just moved here from Ohio, but I looked into it, she's a pretty decent player. Scrappy, but has good field awareness. Cara is a freshman, she's the fullback. Strong player, but high school soccer _is _pretty different from junior high. Still I think with a bit practice, she'll do just fine."

There were no current Freshmen on the team, but three girls in each of the other grades. Kia, Viola, and Yvonne were the only ones set to graduate at the end of the upcoming school year.

"Another two of the girls are Freshmen. Hanna, who I wasn't able to get a lot on. She's the one who wants to play keeper, though, so that's fine, we can gauge her, train her as much as she needs before she'll be playing. _Hopefully._"

Trisha scowled at the girl.

"I swear Kate, if you just jinxed me..."

She did not finish the threat, and the younger girl shifted foot to foot, before taking a deep breath.

"Right. Our last two girls are the utility players. Aja is the last freshman. Very promising, but like I said before... high school soccer is still a level up from junior high. It might take her some practices and a bit of experience to get up to par, but once she does she'll definitely be a force to reckon with. Finally there's Niki, she's a sophomore. She tried out for the team last year, but she was still recovering from an ankle sprain that happened over the summer, and didn't make it. We used to play on the same team, though, I remember - she not all that bad of a player. We can definitely train her up quick, if she decides to join."

The room fell silent as the team mulled over the information.

"Do we know what our game schedule would be, yet?"

Kate nodded at Jenn, one of the team's fullbacks, question.

"The proposed season is all posted, they haven't finalized it yet, though. They won't for at least another two weeks, when the rest of the schools start up classes. I have a print out, if we get our team up and running by next week-"

"When," Viola stubbornly corrected, much to the amusement of the rest of the team. Even Kate gave her a small grin.

"Right, silly me," Kate chuckled quietly. "_When_. We'll be playing Prospect first, which is definitely a positive, because they've always been the weakest team in our division, so it'll be a good way to kick off our season. Hopefully with a win, and our newbies with some experience. That's scheduled exactly one month from today."

"So we'll have about three and a half weeks to get everything together," Stassi summarized out loud.

"Precisely."

Another silence fell over the group, this one leaving the room full of energy, however.

"We can totally do this, girls," Hilary, the teams third attacker, decided. It was met with a unanimous agreement.

"It's all on you, Vi," Jess informed the girl, who's green eyes glinted with determination.

"It is so going down."

The meeting continued on a lighter note, as Kate started detailing several new strategies that she had been working on over the past few weeks. The team chatted, debated, and laughed their way well into the night before Yvonne's parents got home and politely requested that everyone leave, due to the lateness.

That was what found Viola and Kia lying on their backs on the large bed-like lounge chair that was in the younger girls back yard. The night was clear, and a bit chillier than usual, but jeans, sweaters, a light blanket, and each others presence easily kept them warm as they made up their own constellations with the stars.

"Soccer ball!" Kia called out, as she pointed to the sky in a childish way that made Viola crack up.

"Look, it's hitting Drayton's abnormally large head," Viola gleefully pointed out her own abstract image.

Kia snorted at that, before shifting so her head was resting on Viola's shoulder. For a moment she closed her chocolate brown eyes, as she took a deep breath, grin firmly in place at the familiar smell that was her girlfriend. Lavender, from her favorite body wash, and another indescribable scent that always reminded Kia of home. Viola's arm easily curled around the other girl, holding her close.

"Hey, Kia?"

"Mhmm?"

"Do you think we'll all really be a team again?" Viola quietly asked as all the humor faded from the conversation. The thought of their idea failing had been a slight, but constant, nag at the back of her subconscious, but it was only now, as the deciding day drew even closer, that she finally voiced her doubts.

"Yeah. Yeah I do."

"But what if I fail?"

Kia lifted her head slightly to study the other girl, who's green gaze was determinedly fixed at the night sky.

"You're too stubborn to fail," Kia joked. At Viola's unchanging expression, she gave the slightest of sighs.

"Vi, look at me."

It was a moment before the other girl obeyed.

"If anyone can do this, it's you."

She still looked unconvinced.

"Look, babe. Have I ever lied to you?"

"No," Viola's response was quiet.

"And am I ever wrong?"

A slight, amused smile filtered across Viola's face. "Of course not," her tone was lightly teasing, before she was serious again.

"Exactly. And now is no different. On Monday, you're gonna go out there, you're gonna show up _every single guy _on that field, and our recruits will join. Then we're gonna blow all of our competition out of the water this season. And by this time, next year... you and I will have our own place, at Carolina, doing it all over again. Minus the recruiting."

As Kia's description went on, Viola's grin grew.

"How do you do that?"

Seeing her girlfriend's change of mood, Kia laid her head down again.

"Some people are just that amazing. I happen to be one of them," she said in a cocky manner, eliciting a laugh from the other girl.

"Well yeah, I already knew that."

Kia slung one arm over Viola, hugging her closer, as she almost seemed content to leave the conversation right there.

Almost.

"Vi, I know what you can do. And even if you doubt yourself sometimes, I don't. Because I've seen it."

After several minutes of silence, Viola's other arm came up, encircling the other girl completely.

"I love you Kia. You're the best."

"That I am."

Viola chuckled at her girlfriends choice response, but felt the younger girl shift closer.

"You know, you're just as great, Vi. Trust me. We just went over this: I don't lie and I'm never wrong."

The brunette looked up at the sky, relaxed at the feel of her girlfriend's slight breathing on her neck.

"I know."

The comfortable silence returned, and it wasn't long before either of girl drifted off into an easy, peaceful sleep, out under the stars, in each others embrace.

* * *

ANNNND there! Uhm, so yeah, I totally didn't intend on such a big Viola/Kia moment at the end, but I kinda like it. I think it was about time, yeah? :D I hope this makes up for my unfortunate absence! Now, I didn't actually look this over very much, cause I really just wanted to get this POSTED finally, so I'm sorry for any mistakes you encounter.


	8. Chapter 8

So after some checking, I've come to find that Kia was never given a last name (or am I mistaken?)... and actually, neither was Yvonne! Needless to say, I'm taking the liberty :D And here is the next part up! At this point it looks like there will only be two chapters left! And then I will have completed my first, relatively long, story! I'm excited.

XD

Enjoy.

* * *

At some point near the middle of the night, the pair had woken up and moved into the house, where they promptly changed, put on a movie, and fell back asleep only three minutes into it. Viola woke up slowly the next morning, giving a small sigh of contentment as she cuddled closer to a still sleeping Kia.

Thank God I don't have anywhere to be until one, she thought gleefully, hating how little she had been able to enjoy the mornings since she started pretending to be Sebastian. But today was a new day.

And she was bound and determined to spend as much of it as she could, in bed with her girlfriend. She lifted her head tiredly, looking to the TV which was quietly playing the menu page on a loop.

How irritating.

Fumbling with the remote, she managed to click the off button, bringing silence to the room. With a small huff, she let the remote fall to the floor with a loud clang.

"Vi, if you broke that one too, you're buying the next this time," Kia's voice was thick with sleep, and Viola halfheartedly shushed her, relaxing against the soft mattress. Viola spent more nights at Kia's than anywhere else, seemingly living out of the younger girl's room, sometimes.

Eventually the pair dozed off for another hour, before they slowly pulled themselves out of bed. Both brunettes were surprised to find Kia's parents in the kitchen, drinking coffee and chatting idly as if it were an every day occurrence.

"Mom, Dad. Hi."

Kia's tone was slightly surprised, but not disappointed.

"Oh hey sweetie," it was her father who answered, laying the paper down on the table. His thick framed glasses and neatly trimmed hair made him look harmless, despite the fact that he was well known as one of the most ruthless lawyers in the area. Her mother on the other hand was a real estate agent, and there were times when Kia doubted a blood relation with the woman. Blonde hair and blue eyes challenged her and her father's matching brown and brown.

Regardless of the matter, you couldn't generally argue with the state records.

"No work?"

"Honey, it's a Saturday," her mother said, as if it were a silly question. With her back to her parents, Kia rolled her eyes, making Viola grin.

Both Christensen adults were notorious workaholics, and it was still rare to see them even on the weekends, if at all.

"And good morning to you too, Viola," Julie added, almost as an afterthought, sending the other brunette a small smile. Viola returned it easily.

Despite the fact that Kia's parents were rarely around, they had always been welcoming of her and their daughters relationship.

"Good morning."

Viola was feeling upbeat this particular morning, and she turned to grab two bowls for Kia, who was searching through the different kinds of cereals.

"So what are you up for this morning? Sugary, fruity, plain?"

Viola tilted her head, before pointing to the box of _Fruity Pebbles._

"Hmm, rainbow. I like," Kia approved, with a playful wink that always lifted Viola's mood, regardless the situation.

"Exactly my thoughts."

"So what are you two up to today?" Kia's father asked, seemingly interested. They really weren't bad parents, just very busy. Kia never held it against them, however.

"Relaxing for a bit. Then getting Vi ready for a lunch that her mom's making her go to," Kia said, with an exaggerated roll of her eyes. Despite their rare appearances in person, her parents were genuinely interested in keeping up with their daughter's life, which was exclusive to Viola, soccer, her other friends, and school.

Viola was nodding her head in agreement.

"I'd use the term torture, but yeah. It's happening," Viola agreed, earning a grin from each of the three Christensen's.

"And on that note, we will see you later," Kia said with a cheeky grin, as she carried her bowl of food in one hand, and gently lead Viola away by her wrist. They returned to Kia's room, where they had promptly found a soccer game on TV and turned the channel to it, eating their breakfast in between their additional commentary.

"Oh come on, you had 22 wide open!" Viola argued with the TV, when one of the green shirted players made an interception. Neither teams were ones that she usually watched, and her loyalty shifted back and forth between them.

"Yeah, but 22 wouldn't have been able to do anything with it," Kia argued, pointing out how he was loosely surrounded by players. Her girlfriend huffed none the less.

"You don't know that for sure."

Kia simply rolled her eyes with amusement. Somethings just wouldn't change.

They watched the rest of the game before returning their empty bowls to the kitchen sink. Kia's parents had already disappeared by then, but the brunette didn't think much of it, as she ushered her girlfriend to change so they could head to the Hastings' household. Viola did so with incredible reluctance, though Kia was eventually able to persuade her with some tempting promises.

A half hour later, Kia was resting on Viola's bed, as the other girl tore through her large walk-in closet.

"So I just don't know what to wear. I never really thought I'd have a choice with these things, you know?"

Rolling her eyes, Kia rose from the bed, moving to survey the options that her girlfriend had, which was, surprisingly, many. After several minutes of debating, the pair settled on a white dress. Ushering her girlfriend to the bed, Kia then picked out a pair of low, white heels, a denim jacket, and a small black purse.

"It seems kinda...simple?"

Kia raised an eyebrow at her girlfriend's twirl in the mirror.

"Well, who are you trying to dress up for?"

Viola pursed her lips slightly.

"No one. I just feel like it's more...grunge chic when I need 'I am Holier than thou' prissy-preppy."

Kia rolled her eyes, but gave a short laugh.

"Wait, are you actually thinking of something your mom would approve of? Since when have you ever cared?"

Viola paused in her self-surveillance.

"That is an excellent point you have there."

In either case, Viola conceded, it was still a nice dress, if a bit less debutante-esque.

"You know," Kia started, getting off the bed to make her way to Viola. "If you are really that conflicted, we can just get it off of you. Like...right now."

The sly grin that accompanied her suggestion was not lost on Viola, who returned it with her own rueful one.

"While I strongly agree with that idea, I unfortunately do not have much time."

Kia looked over the other girl's shoulder, to the wall clock that was behind her.

"You said you had to be there at one, right?"

Viola nodded with an added 'hmm'.

"And it takes twenty minutes to get to the country club it's at?"

Another affirmation from her girlfriend had Kia smiling.

"Well, you're late then."

Viola's eyes widened as she spun around to check the time.

"Twelve fifty-three! Shit!"

Kia's amusement only increased at her girlfriend's language - despite her general creation of mass chaos and rebellion, Viola rarely cursed.

"I can get you there in fifteen," Kia tried to appease the girl, who was nodding quickly, as she filled the small black purse with keys, and various cards that she would or would not need. Finished she turned to the empty room. Blinking she hurried after Kia, who was already at the front door.

True to her word, the pair pulled up to the country club just fifteen minutes later. With a hurried thanks, and kiss on the cheek, Viola let herself out of the car, and into the fancy entry way.

"The Junior League Luncheon is just through those doors," the clerk said, pointing to a pair of sliding doors to the left. With a quiet thanks, Viola strode over to said doors.

Time for another dramatic entrance.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

Rather shockingly, Viola maintained a decent amount of control over her table manners, enough that at least her mother would not nag at her about it later. She studied the room, her eyes falling on Olivia Lennox almost enviously.

How does she make this stuff look so easy? Viola wondered to herself.

"And why does she get the table with all the pretty ladies," the brunette added under her breath, giving her own table a once over.

Maybe if she had been on time, she wouldn't have been stuck at the elderly table. Finally, nearly an hour and a half into the lunch, she finally seized her opportunity to escape to the woman's room. Once in the small bathroom, she sunk into the brown, horribly out of date couch that was there, able to relax at last. Who knew lunch could be so tortuous? How can anyone make anything involving food be so bad?

With her eyes closed, her head had just fallen to the back of the couch when she heard the door open again. There was a giggle that Viola was able to ignore, until the person spoke.

"That bad, huh?"

With a barely audible sigh, Viola straightened up on the couch, meeting the blue eyes of Olivia.

"Much worse, actually."

The blonde grinned, making her way to the sinks.

"Come on, it's not that horrible."

Viola snorted slightly, but didn't try to rebuff her statement.

"So, how was the kissing booth for you?" Olivia asked slowly, trying to find a way to make the unexpected meeting more comfortable.

"It would have been much better if I hadn't been there at all," Viola admitted easily.

"You got kicked out, didn't you?"

Viola grinned.

"Me? No... the two neanderthals that decided to turn the kissing booth into WWF Smack-down, yes."

Olivia laughed.

"Wow, really? I didn't actually hear much of the story, just the rumors."

Viola shrugged.

"I always manage to find myself in the middle of all things bad," Viola said, already feeling better.

"Aww, that can't be true," Olivia disagreed, still amused at the brunette's over dramatized story.

"Oh, it is," Viola assured her. "This psycho stalker of mine beat up on Duke because he was the one that I was about to, albeit with incredible reluctance, kiss."

"You know Duke?" Olivia tilted her head with a curiously interested look on her face. She picked up on the casual way Viola had spoken of him, as though they had already been acquainted. Viola paused at the question, before realizing that she, as herself, had never met the Illyrian soccer player.

"Oh, uhm," her mind worked over drive. "My brother's talked all about him. They're roommates. Duke's been helping him with some stuff, he's staying kinda quiet about it all though."

Mentally giving herself a pat on the back.

"S...Sebastian's you're brother?" the blonde asked again, almost hesitantly.

"The one and only," the soccer player agreed with a nod.

"Oh, huh. Small world," Olivia added with a tone of mild interest. Of course, she had already had some inkling of the relation between Sebastian and Viola after her first date with Duke, but finding out that their theories were right was a different sort of wonder.

"Tell me about it."

That was one thing that Viola could definitely agree with the blonde on.

The door opening made both of the girls turn towards the sound. A pink clad Monique made her way out of the stall, shooting Viola a look of disgust before simply rolling her eyes at Olivia.

"Well, Viola, I knew it would just be a matter of time before you started on the girls here, but you've moved surprisingly fast, all things considered," Monique said in her naturally cruel way. Armed with the knowledge that Viola ducked out of every Junior League event that she could, which was almost all until recently, there was little room to chance a guess at the 'all things considered' Monique was implying.

"Monique," Viola's voice was coated with honey, almost overwhelmingly so, as she got up from the couch and crossed the room halfway. "Always a pleasure. Now, I know how much you love the color pink, but I really think a nice lavender would have done you more justice," Viola added as she took a step closer to the blonde, who's expression was slowly melting from scorn to something mixed between disgust and horror. "Brings out the darker, grayish-blue in your eyes. Looks hot."

"Eww. You're disgusting Hastings," the blonde snapped, brushing her off. "Truly, you should be kept in a cage or something. It's just unhealthy to pollute the rest of the world with your presence," she added scathingly, before deftly avoiding the brunette to return to the party. Viola had turned as Monique passed her, and a small smirk played on the brunette's lips, claiming a victory. She turned back to Olivia, who had watched the whole proceeding in a stunned silence.

"That girl... she's really gonna make something of her life," Viola joked easily, as she crossed her way to the sinks.

"Uh, yeah. That was..." Olivia paused as she tried to think of the words to accurately describe the short conversation she had just witnessed.

"Monique being Monique?" Viola asked lightly, smiling at the blonde, who still didn't know what to say. Olivia stayed quiet, not that Viola noticed.

"Why did you say that to her?" Olivia finally wondered, curiosity winning out. Viola leaned easily against the sink, shrugging her shoulders easily.

"If there's one thing Monique hates worse than me, it's someone so blatantly hitting on her - she thinks she's too entitled, or something. Whatever."

While it still had not answered many of her questions, Olivia nodded. It did seem to make sense after all.

"You know her well, then?"

"Yeah, her and Sebastian used to go out. She was around all the time," here Viola rolled her eyes with a fake, exaggerated look, making the blonde grin. "Which was brutal. I always asked why he dated her." The brunette scrunched her nose at remembering her brother's response. "'Because she's hot'. Seriously? Pathetic 'Bastain."

Olivia's grin widened at Viola's little dialogue with herself, also making note of Sebastian's apparent nick-name. She was just as quirky as her brother, leaving no doubt that the two did, indeed, share a blood relation. The silence that fell into the room lasted for a few minuets before Olivia shifted.

"Well, right. I better get back before they send someone to search for me."

Viola nodded easily in agreement.

"They'd probably just leave _me _to die if it came to that,"

The blonde laughed - apparently, instead of just similar quirks, Viola could also brighten her mood like her brother seemed so adept to do.

"If you say so."

The brunette gave her companion a little wave as she left, leaving the bathroom peaceful. Viola walked over to the couch, sinking into it once again, as she silently prayed for the afternoon to be over.

0o0o0o0o 0o 0o0 o 0 o 0o

After the hellish lunch had finished, Viola relaxed with Kia before returning to the dorms, deciding that it would be best to stay at school the night before the game. She saw Duke parking his motorcycle, and Viola hurried by, out of his view, knowing that he was planning on going to the stadium for a bit before heading back to their room. He had told her that it was his tradition, every night before a home game he would go to the field and relax there for an hour or so, trying to picture how the game would go in his head as he waited.

She had just gotten her stuff shoved into the closet when the door opened again. Viola turned, intent on greeting her roommate. What she saw instead made her freeze.

A startlingly similar face looked back at her.

"Sebastian?"

Her brother returned her stare.

"Vi?"

"What happened? I thought you were going to be back tomorrow!"

"Yeah, we got in a day early. Why are you... are those real?" he had stepped right up too her, hesitantly reaching out to touch the fake hair stuck to her face.

"Oh yeah, I'm growing sideburns now," she said pleasantly before slapping his hand away. "No. You can't be here."

"What do you mean? This is my room. Why are you dressed like me?"

Viola shifted.

"That's a long story."

"Well I'm not going anywhere. And neither are you, until I hear is."

"Okay, okay," Viola agreed, before dodging past her brother to the door. She twisted the bolt lock, knowing that Duke would not be able to get in without being admitted.

When she turned around, Sebastian was looking at her, one eyebrow raised.

"That bad, huh?"

For a brief moment, Viola had a flashback to Olivia's exact words earlier that day.

"Can you imagine how that would look if Duke walked in to find two Sebastian Hastings?"

The real Sebastian thought that over for a moment before agreeing that it would be extremely awkward, confusing, and difficult to explain.

"True. So _now,_ can you tell me why you're dressed like... me?"

Viola heaved a sigh, before launching into the drama that her live had become these past two weeks. By the end Sebastian stared at her in a stunned silence.

"Wow."

Viola nodded.

"I know. Everything's so messed up, but tomorrow... tomorrow it all gets better. Everything can go back to normal. Please Sebastian, this game is so important to me right now. You have no idea."

The older Hastings twin nodded slowly after a second.

"Okay. So what's the plan for tomorrow?"

Viola opened her mouth before the door handle broke them out of the quiet.

"Yo, Sebastian, you in there?" Duke knocked on the door. "Come on man, let me in."

The twins looked at each other, wide eyed.

"Shit. What do we do?" he hissed, as his sister tore off the wig, sideburns, and eyebrows.

"I have normal clothes, give me a couple seconds," Viola ordered, tearing off to the closet. Sebastian nodded.

"Hey, just a minute dude," he raised his voice enough so that it would carry through the door.

"Sure man," Duke's muffled voice came back. Viola straightened the red tank top, giving the black skirt a quick adjustment before she fluffed out her hair. She put the fake hair pieces into the small gym bag she had, before making herself at home on Sebastian's bed, nodding to her brother.

"Sorry about that man," Sebastian let the bigger boy in, who promptly froze at Viola's lounging form on the bed.

"Uh...yeah. N-no problem."

"You must be Duke," Viola said, shooting her short-termed roommate a bright grin. "'Bastian's told me so much about you, I feel like I know you already."

Duke's natural clumsiness around anyone female was a Godsend to the Hastings twins, as he promptly forgot about questioning the fact of why the door had been locked if it was only the two siblings in the room.

"I just came to pick him up, actually. Our mother wants us home for some," Viola rolled her eyes playfully. "Family thing. You know how it is," she said, before realizing that the blonde had absolutely no way of relating to someone he thought was just his roommate's sister.

"Er, yeah...sure."

Viola promptly shoved the gym bag at Sebastian, who narrowed his eyes at his sister before turning to his roommate.

"Yeah, so I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Don't forget, coach want's us in the locker room for nine."

Sebastian immediately nodded in agreement, now that he knew everything.

"Come on 'Bastian, don't want to keep mom waiting. You know how she is," Viola pulled him from the room. The door shut behind the twins and Viola sighed, leaning against it.

"This is so messed up," she muttered, while Sebastian nodded his agreement. Viola headed down the hall, flipping open her phone as she did.

"Paul? Slight emergency. Can you pick me up from Illyria? I'll be down by the stadium."

The chat lasted for all of two minutes before she hung up, and walked faster.

"Vi, where are we going?"

"I am getting my uniform and soccer stuff from the locker room," she informed her brother. "And then we are going somewhere other than here, to settle our plans for tomorrow."

"Wait, our plans?"

"Yeah. _Our _plans. Because after tomorrow, I go back to the new and improved Cornwall Girl's Soccer team, and you'll be stuck explaining to everyone in Illyria exactly why their star striker just up and quit the sport. We need to tell everyone something, but we need to figure out exactly what that something is first."

Slowly the older twin nodded, a feeling of dread settled into his stomach.

"It's gonna be a long night, isn't it?"


End file.
